Sangha: A Sikkim Assembly constituency not found in maps

Sikkim to vote for Lok Sabha, Assembly in simultaneous polls on April 19, 2024.

The Himalayan State of Sikkim can boast of many uniqueness such as first organic State or the State that had the longest serving chief minister or the first region to get annexed to India through a referendum, it is also the only State to have a constituency that does not have a geographic boundary.

Sangha is one of 32 constituencies in Sikkim Assembly but it does not exist on the map. In this ‘virtual’ constituency, the contestants and the voters are Buddhists monks and nuns. It is the only constituency in the country reserved for the Sanghas, a monastic community.

There are a total of 2,881 Sangha voters which includes both Monks and Anis (Nuns) from the State’s 111 recognised monasteries, according to Sikkim Chief Electoral Officer’s website. To preserve the distinct identity of Sangha, only registered Monks/Nuns can contest the Sangha seat.

Sangha electors live anywhere in the the four mountain districts of the State. They vote in the same polling station as other electorates but are provided with a separate electronic voting machine. For example, a Sangha voter living in the capital Gangtok will be voting using a separate EVM available in the polling station assigned to them.

The booth-level officers of the polling stations are responsible for registering the Sangha voter.

Political parties too ensure a Sangha is their candidate for this seat. Sonam Lama of Sikkim Krantikari Morcha was elected from Sangha seat in 2014 and 2019. In an interview to The Hindu in 2014, Mr. Lama said that the seat draws its origin from hundreds of years of tradition.

The Kingdom of Sikkim was ruled by the Namgyal monarchy since the 17th century. The ruler, the Buddhist-priest king was called Chogyal or the “righteous ruler”. Palden Thondup Namgyal was the last king of Sikkim, before the princely state was annexed to the Republic of India in 1975 through a referendum.