Peace in Sikkim matter of paramount importance, governor tells SDF chief Chamling

Urging all to keep faith in law and order, as well as the investigating agencies, Mr. Acharya told the opposition party that the police and the investigating agencies are doing their jobs and committed to the people of the state.

Sikkim Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya | Photo Credit: X/@Laxmanacharya54

Sikkim Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya said that the prevalence of peace and harmony in the state has always been a matter of paramount importance to him, the Raj Bhawan said in a statement.

Hours after the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) supremo Pawan Kumar Chamling-led delegation called on him to submit a memorandum demanding a CBI probe into the case related to assault in the former Speaker K.N. Rai by seven assailants in Melli town last week, it said that the governor has assured the party that peace and harmony in the state have always been of paramount importance.

Urging all to keep faith in law and order, as well as the investigating agencies, Mr. Acharya told the opposition party that the police and the investigating agencies are doing their jobs and committed to the people of the state.

Emphasising the importance of peaceful elections, the governor assured that the upcoming elections would be conducted smoothly. He also wished K.N. Rai a quick recovery.

Earlier, the Chamling-led SDF party called on the governor and briefed him on the incident in Melli on March 1, in which the former speaker K.N. Rai and others, were assaulted by some individuals.

After he met the governor, Mr. Chamling expressed displeasure at the Sikkim Police's progress on the case.

"We are not happy with the pace and progress of the ongoing probe by the Sikkim Police into the murderous attack on Rai," Mr. Chamling said.

Though the Sikkim Police has arrested six to seven people involved in the attack, it has shown no inclination to find out the mastermind behind the incident, Mr. Chamling said.

He said that Mr. Rai's condition continued to be critical, and he had been taken to the national capital, where he was undergoing treatment at Max Hospital.

The SDF supremo demanded imposition of the central rule in Sikkim by invoking article 371(F) (G) as the law and order situation in the state had broken down completely, and conducting free and fair polls was not possible anymore.

The former chief minister said that the governor gave the SDF delegation a patient hearing and assured that necessary action would be taken to ensure that the law and order situation prevailed in Sikkim.