Analysts say the lack of political ambition and unity among the Nepali speaking community are the reasons they have not been able to make it to the State Assembly or the Lok Sabha (central parliament) yet. [break]
It is estimated that the population of Nepali speaking people in Dehradun alone stands at around 500,000. The number goes above 1 million if entire Uttrakhand is considered.
According to one of the oldest organizations of Nepalis here - Gorkhali Sudhar Sabha (GSS) - the fragmented settlement of Gorkhalis in mountainsides stand at over 1.2 million if cumulated properly.
However, the figures remain neglected due to various reasons, states Rup Narayan Rana, executive member of GSS. The retired Indian army personnel adds that the Indian government census, however, shows this population to be far low.
“Until around 15 years ago, there was domination of the Gorkhalis in Dehradun. It felt just like a part of Nepal due to similar culture and societies. However, over the years, especially after this place was declared the capital of Uttarakhand in 2000, Gorkhalis fell into kind of minority in their own place,” says Rana.
“That would not have been a problem if we were still empowered. But then, due to the lack of far sightedness, many Nepalis sold off their precious land to the outsiders for very little amount and rapidly shrunk to smaller plots.”
On the other hand, they were left behind in terms of job opportunities and political reach.
The gradual fall of Gorkhalis´ social influence in their ´own place´ is something almost every elderly Nepali in Dehraudn talks about. Yet, not everyone tries to analyze if that could be checked.
Retired Lt Col VK Sharma states that the Gorkhalis have over 200-year-old history in Uttrakhand, but their progress was stifled due to the lack of education.
“The lack of education means the lack of vision, or the lack of awareness. In the present generation, you may find the girls and boys of Nepali families pursuing good courses or better educated. However, if you look at the background, the Gorkhalis who settled here after the end of the Nepal-Anglo war were all warriors. Politics and other fields were not for them. They were just interested in join the army,” Sharma says.
The Ango - Nepalese war (1814 - 1816) was fought between Nepal and the then British East India Company over border disputes.
The Sugauli Treaty marked the culmination of war where Nepal lost one third of its territory to the British. However, the Nepalis who had already settled down in Tehiri, Garhwal, Kumaoun and other places did not returned to the downsized Nepal.
According to Rana, the Gorkhalis have always contributed in every freedom movements in India since then. Due to their sincerity and loyalty, they were sought after by the British and the Indian armies.
“But this has not earned them due position in the country even today,” he maintains. “The agitation in Darjeeling is going on and off for many years now. But we have not been able to push our movement to a conclusion. Here in Dehradun, we are weaker, politically. The situation would have been different if we were well educated, aware and united,” he adds.
´Gorkha Democratic Front´ the only political party of Gorkhalis.
Several organizations like Balabhadra Khalanga Development Committee, All India Nepali Language Committee, Kirant Rai Organization, Limbu Society, Gurung Society and GSS, and some others have been existence in Dehradun for long.
But there was no single political party of the Nepali Indians until 1978. Led by of some active members of GSS and others, Gorkha Democratic Front (GDF) was registered in 1978 with an aim to unite and empower the Nepalis living here.
This is the one and only political party of the Gorkhalis in Dehradun till date. It actively participates in Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. It is yet to win a single seat, despite being in existence for three and a half decades.
According to Surya Bikram Shahi, president of the party, GDF has made a difference for the community though it has not been able to meet people´s expectations.
“There are many issues related with the Gorkhalis which GDF has helped to address. The situation of the Gorkhalis in Tehri, Purola, Karnprayag, Tuni, Uttarkashi and Dharchula is very bad and GDF has helped bridge their gap with the administration so that they are benefited,” he said.
“In the political front, we have not been able to fare well. But we keep trying for larger popular base and greater success in future,” he adds.
Retired Lt Col of Indian Army, Bhupendra Singh Chhetri, who contested two assembly elections in Uttarakhand in 2007 and 2012, feels that the reason of his loss was due to the lack of unity among the Gorkhalis.
“Despite contesting from densely populated Mussoorie constituency in 2012, the result did not favor us. This is due to lack of support or unity among our people. But we should be optimistic and never give up,” he stresses.
But, Dehradun-based senior journalist Laxman Prasad Thapa feels that GDF could garner support of the Gorkhalis living in Uttarakhand if it had proper leadership and vision. “The lack of influence of GDF has let the Congress party to continue to enjoy support of most Gorkhalis,” he notes.
“Congress has more Gorkhalis in its pocket than GDF. And I never heard GDF carrying out membership campaign to add more people in its fold. They become active only during certain times. At the same time, Congress has a separate Gorkha Cell in the party organization,” Thapa says.
He adds that the votes of Gorkhalis are now further divided as Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM, the party based in Darjeeling, West Bengal) has also ventured in Uttarakhand politics by setting up a branch in Dehradun. When Chhetri contested from Moussorrie, a Garhwali candidate from GJMM was contesting for the seat.
Thapa further states that it is not possible to win Assembly or Lok Sabha election just with the Gorkhali votes as the community is separated by constituencies.
“It is very important garner support of other communities, besides the Gorkhali votes. Or else, things won´t change,” he concludes.
The majority of Gorkhali population in Dehradun are of Mangolian origin - Thapa, Magar, Gurung and Rai, among others.
Rana even guessed that lack of the political domination of the Nepalis in Dehradum must have something to do with the majority of such people who are quite fun loving and carefree by nature, instead of being ambitious.
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