List of Chief Ministers of Sikkim

Chief Minister of Sikkim
Incumbent
Pawan Kumar Chamling

since 12 December 1994
Appointer Governor of Sikkim
Inaugural holder Kazi Lhendup Dorjee
Formation 16 May 1975

The Chief Minister of Sikkim, a north Indian state, is the head of the Government of Sikkim. As per the Constitution of India, the Governor of Sikkim is the state's de jure head, but de facto executive authority rests with the chief minister. Following elections to the Sikkim Legislative Assembly, the governor usually invites the party (or coalition) with a majority of seats to form the government. The governor appoints the chief minister, whose council of ministers are collectively responsible to the assembly. Given that he has the confidence of the assembly, the chief minister's term is for five years and is subject to no term limits.[1]

Since 1975, Sikkim has had five chief ministers. The first was Kazi Lhendup Dorjee of the Indian National Congress. Pawan Kumar Chamling of the Sikkim Democratic Front has served as Chief Minister of Sikkim since 1994. He has occupied the office longer than all his predecessors put together.

Chief Ministers of Sikkim

Colour key for parties
No Name Term[2] Party[lower-alpha 1] Tenure
1 Kazi Lhendup Dorjee 16 May 1975 18 August 1979 Indian National Congress 1555 Days
Vacant[lower-alpha 2]
(President's rule)
18 August 1979 18 October 1979 N/A
2 Nar Bahadur Bhandari
MLA for Soreong
18 October 1979 11 May 1984 Sikkim Janata Parishad 1668 Days
3 B. B. Gurung
MLA for Jorthang-Nayabazar
11 May 1984 25 May 1984 Indian National Congress 13 Days
Vacant[lower-alpha 2]
(President's rule)
25 May 1984 8 March 1985 N/A
(2) Nar Bahadur Bhandari
MLA for Soreong
8 March 1985 17 June 1994 Sikkim Sangram Parishad 3389 Days
[Total 5057 Days]
4 Sanchaman Limboo 17 June 1994 12 December 1994 179 Days
5 Pawan Kumar Chamling
MLA for Namchi-Singhithang
12 December 1994 Incumbent Sikkim Democratic Front 8287 Days
  1. This column only names the chief minister's party. The state government he heads may be a complex coalition of several parties and independents; these are not listed here.
  2. 1 2 When President's rule is in force in a state, its council of ministers stands dissolved. The office of chief minister thus lies vacant. At times, the legislative assembly also stands dissolved.[3]

References

  1. Durga Das Basu. Introduction to the Constitution of India. 1960. 20th Edition, 2011 Reprint. pp. 241, 245. LexisNexis Butterworths Wadhwa Nagpur. ISBN 978-81-8038-559-9. Note: although the text talks about Indian state governments in general, it applies for the specific case of Sikkim as well.
  2. Former Chief Ministers of Tripura. Government of Tripura. Retrieved on 21 August 2013.
  3. Amberish K. Diwanji. "A dummy's guide to President's rule". Rediff.com. 15 March 2005. Retrieved on 3 March 2013.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.