Sikkim: Former CAP working President DB Chauhan joins SKM amidst party dispute

Former Working President of the Citizen Action Party (CAP), Dal Bahadur Chauhan, has announced his decision to join the ruling Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) party. Chauhan, who previously served two terms as President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), made this move after facing dissatisfaction within CAP.

Chauhan's departure from CAP follows a series of internal disagreements, notably sparked by the selection of Bharat Basnet as the Lok Sabha MP candidate, who also assumed the role of party president. In his resignation letter addressed to the CAP president, Chauhan expressed his discontentment with the party's deviation from its founding principles.

He highlighted the contradiction within CAP's decision-making process stating that the party's founding president, LP Kafley, had decreed that neither the party president nor any executive member would contest elections. However, Chauhan pointed out that on March 21, the parliamentary committee of the party chose Basnet as the Lok Sabha MP candidate, contrary to the established protocol.

Chauhan's objection stemmed from what he perceived as a departure from the party's principles, asserting that while he does not oppose Basnet's selection, the manner in which it occurred was flawed. He speculated on possible motives behind the decision, suggesting that the party's chief coordinator, Ganesh Rai, might have exerted undue influence or personal interest in the selection process.