Opposition Party in Sikkim Threatens to Move Court against Govt Order on 'One Family One Job' Scheme

Gangtok: The Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) has threatened to move court if the state government, led by the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM), does not withdraw its order on ‘One Family One Job’ scheme beneficiaries within a week.

The scheme, launched by former chief minister Pawan Chamling before the Lok Sabha elections, aims to provide employment to a member of every family that does not have a government job in the state.

The latest notification from the Department of Personnel in the state, dated May 31, says that several departments accepted candidates under the scheme when the model code of conduct was in place in Sikkim. “Allowing candidates to report for duty during the Model Code of Conduct violates the norms of the Election Commission and the concerned department or officer would be liable to be penalised under the established norms of the Election Commission of India,” it said.

The opposition SDF claimed that the latest order puts around 10,000 jobs in the state at stake.

In its first phase, 12,000 people were provided government appointments in January. In the second phase, that number is estimated to be 8,000.

Meanwhile, the ruling SKM party maintained that the appointments under the scheme have been suspended as appointments were made when the model code of conduct was in place.