Sikkim: Former footballer Bhaichung Bhutia to contest assembly election from Gangtok

KOLKATA: Former footballer Bhaichung Bhutia is making his electoral debut in his home state of Sikkim by contesting assembly elections from Gangtok and Tumin-Lingee from Hamro Sikkim Party, the political outfit he floated last year.
Bhutia was the Trinamool’s Lok Sabha candidate from Darjeeling and assembly candidate from Siliguri in 2016. He lost both elections before quitting the TMC in February last year.
Bhutia filed his nomination from Gangtok on Friday afternoon.He is yet to file his nomination from Tumin - Lingee, in East Sikkim, the second seat he is contesting from. Assembly and Lok Sabha polls will be held simultaneously in Sikkim on April 11.
"I am fighting the assembly elections from two seats of Gangtok and Tumin-Lingee," said Bhutia who had an illustrious football career playing for several clubs and captaining Indian team in the late 1990s. He earned the moniker of Sikkimese Sniper for his sharp and precise attack. He retired from the game in 2011 and contested joined Trinamool in the 2014.
Last year, the 42-year old soccer star launched his political party, Hamro Sikkim Party with the resolve to motivate young people to join politics and pull the state out of the "political mess created by Pawan Chamling" who is now the longest serving chief minister of any state in the country. Sikkim has 31 assembly segments and one Lok Sabha Segment.
Bhutia and his colleagues will seek votes on the issues of unemployment, farmer distress and "guaranteed remunerative price" to farmers. "We will set up an employment commission and a farmers' commission," said Bhutia.
Bhutia who won over millions of fans through his game is now making an emotional appeal to the people of Sikkim to bless his endeavour in politics. Soon after filing his nomination from Gangtok on Friday, Bhutia tweeted, “Like football I need your blessings in politics also to do something good for our motherland”.
One of the biggest problems plaguing Gangtok is that of parking. “addressing the issue of parking will be our priority.”