By N William Singh
A small community of Gorkhalis fights for rights and recognition in ethnocentric Mizoram.
Photo: N William Singh
“Our population in Mizoram during 1960s was around five thousand; 50
years later it is roughly the same,” says a Gorkhali shoe salesman in
Aizawl, the state capital of Mizoram. “Back then the state government
used to offer us scholarships to study in schools and colleges. Now our
sons and daughters receive no such assistance.” After a few minutes
pause, he murmurs, “How are my children going to have decent lives here?
It’s very disturbing to think about such things, and this keeps me and
my wife awake all night. The only way out of this is either we leave
this place or assimilate into the Mizo society.
Earlier, Mizos and
Gorkhalis were like brothers and sisters, but now they see each other as
‘us’ and ‘them’"
When the Indian Air Force bombed Mizoram in March 1966, it became – and
remains – the only Indian state to come under such attacks. For two
decades afterwards, armed revolutionary movements shook the Mizo hills.
It was only in 1986, when a peace-accord between militant groups and the
Indian government was signed, that positive changes began to be seen
within Mizo society. Today, Sikkim is the only other state in the Indian
Northeast without violent insurgent groups. However, the fruits of
peaceful development have not reached the Gorkhalis living within
Mizoram. While the rest of Mizo society is on an uphill trajectory, the
Gorkhalis are heading downhill.
The Gorkhalis first arrived in Mizoram in 1891 – back then called the
Lushai Hills – accompanying Captain John Shakespear, who wrote in his
diary that the Hills were not a desirable place to be stationed in for
long. But the Gorkhalis felt at home right from the beginning. The
terrain, streams, and the flora and fauna in the Hills were akin to what
they had left behind in their own country, Nepal. At that time,
however, Gorkhalis were not allowed to settle outside the surcharge
areas, meaning forest lands adjacent to the villages that were under the
jurisdiction of Mizo village chiefs. But the Lushai chiefs were keen on
having them within their villages because they did not want the
Gorkhalis clearing the forest lands for agriculture and settlements. In a
standing order issued in 1922, William Lawrence Scott,
then-Superintendent of the Lushai Hills, wrote, “I have been asked by
several chiefs to allow settlements of Gorkhalis in their villages.
[But] the present orders permit settlements only at and near Aijal,
Champhai and Vanlaiphai.”
Nonetheless, with permission from the village chiefs, the Gorkhalis
settled in the Lushai Hills, bypassing the Chin Hills Regulation Act,
1896, which prohibited the residence of non-native peoples in the Hills.
Socioeconomic relationships between different communities meant that
Gorkhalis – and even traders from Bengal and Assam – were able to get
around the regulation. Gorkhalis who had served long-term in the British
army and were known for good conduct remained behind in the Hills after
retirement. The majority of Gorkhalis today remain clustered around
Aizawl, Sairang, Vanlaiphai, Lunglei, Demagiri and Thingdawl.
While some
Gorkhalis with exemplary services were awarded considerably large
pieces of land, very few were bestowed with chieftainships, with powers
and privileges on par with Mizo chiefs, including hereditary rights of
succession. One Rifleman Dhohbir Rai was awarded the whole area of
Dinthar in Aizawl, while another Rifleman Sriman Rai was awarded the
whole area of Zotlang in Aizawl.
The cordial relations between the Mizos and Gorkhalis continued during
the Mizo National Front Movement of 1966-1986 as well, with Gorkhalis
joining as active members of the Front. Some volunteered as drivers to
transport goods and arms supplies for the dissenters, some as river
navigators, and others as shooting instructors and experts on
explosives. Some of the Gorkhalis even served prison time for their
'unlawful' contributions during the Mizo National Movement. Later, in
1982, when the Mizo National Front issued the Quit Mizoram Order to
non-Mizos, Gorkhalis who were in possession of immovable properties and
who were residing in Mizoram prior to 1966 were exempted from the
ruling.
During colonial times and while under the Assamese administration until
1972, Gorkhalis were also well-represented in politics. In 1936, a
Gorkhali Mauzadar (Panchayat) was formed in the Lushai Hills to allow
Gorkhalis to exercise some administrative coordination over their own
population, such as collecting taxes on a 15% commission rate. During
the 1950s, Gorkhali Panchayats were vested with some autonomy; for
instance, Gorkhali social customs and practices were controlled with
minimal interference from district magistrates. In village councils,
Gorkhalis were represented through election or nomination. Some of the
Gorkhalis even held the coveted position of village council president.
However, the institution of Mauzadar was abolished in 1953, along with
the tradition of Mizo chieftaincy. Nonetheless, that same year, when the
Indian Constitution granted Mizoram the status of an autonomous Mizo
District Council, Lok Bahadur Lama, a Gorkhali from Khatla, became the
circular assistant – a peon who distributes letters – of the Council.
And when Mizoram was declared a union territory in 1972, Kapurchand
Thakuri, a Gorkhali, was nominated to the first Mizoram Legislative
Assembly.
Migrate or assimilate
Unfortunately, socio-political and administrative spaces for the
Gorkhalis were suddenly reduced when Mizoram achieved statehood in 1987
and became increasingly ethnocentric. Intolerance for non-Mizo
communities meant that even the Gorkhalis fell out of favour. The first
blow came during the two-decade-long insurgency, during which cordial
relations gave way to an intolerance and exclusivism. The process of
village grouping – a governmental tactic to isolate villagers from the
insurgents – was enacted in the Mizo hills, and introduced sentiments of
ethnic exclusiveness into the Mizo society. During these groupings,
Mizos were given priority over non-Mizos for settlement in best
locations. As a result, many Gorkhalis were affected and left Mizoram.
For instance, in Champhai district, almost all Gorkhalis, except three
families, left for good. In a state message broadcast in 1999 Mizoram
Chief Minister Pu Zoramthanga did acknowledge the Gorkhali community’s
role in enhancing peace and harmony in Mizo society, but Gorkhalis’
status in Mizoram continues to deteriorate.
To empower themselves and raise their living standards, Gorkhali civil
society associations have been working towards raising awareness in the
community. Two associations in particular stand out: the Mizoram Gorkha
Students Union (MGSU), established in 1971; and the Mizoram Gorkha Youth
Association (MGYA), formed in 1976. With its motto of ‘Unity and
Education’, MGSU aims to keep the Gorkhali community aware of their
fundamental rights and duties. It is also involved in preventing
Gorkhali youths from committing juvenile delinquencies and abusing
drugs. In 1995 the students union openly supported the Bharatiya Nepali
Rashtriya Parishad (Indian Nepali National Council - BNRP) – led by
then-Chief Minister of Sikkim Shri Nar Bahadur Bhandari – which was
lobbying for the inclusion of Nepali as an official language in the
Indian Constitution.
MGYA does not differ much from MSGU in terms of its focus or
activities. Like MSGU, the youth association frequently organises social
awareness programmes, cleanliness drives, and functions to keep the
Gorkhali community united. Prior to the formation of the MGYA, different
youth clubs existed in pockets of Mizoram where Gorkhalis resided.
Today the MGYA is the most active and the most influential civil society
association for the Gorkhalis in Mizoram. Not only has it become an
agent for social change and development among the Gorkhali community, it
also acts as a catalyst for maintaining social harmony with other
communities in Mizoram.
Since 1995 MGYA has also been championing the recognition of Gorkhalis
as an Other Backward Class (OBC) in Mizoram. In other Indian states –
Manipur, Assam, West Bengal, Uttaranchal and Himachal Pradesh and
Meghalaya – Gorkhalis have already been classified under the OBC.
Achieving this status will provide favourable opportunities to the
Gorkhalis under the constitutional provisions of reservation, primarily
in higher education and government jobs. Gorkhali youths with higher
education might then have a better chance at a decent job. Unemployment
among the Gorkhalis has been rising since 1987, and as a result many
Gorkhali youths are forced into menial jobs, drug addiction and
delinquency. In June last year, the vice-chairman of the National
Commission for Minorities did express his desire to grant OBC status to
Gorkhalis of Mizoram, but the issue has been heavily politicised.
Non-Gorkhali civil society groups such as the Young Mizo Association
(YMA) – the largest and the most influential NGO in Mizoram – have been
openly objecting to Gorkhalis' demands, and their position on this does
not seem likely to change anytime soon.
One of the Gorkhalis’ other major demands, given that the majority of
them are Hindus, is the ‘right to rites and rituals’. Since 1973, they
have been demanding a site for cremation. When a Gorkhali dies in
Mizoram, the last rituals are often left incomplete, with some of them
buried in the Mizo community cemeteries. Earlier, some well-off
Gorkhalis did carry their dead down to areas where they could perform
the last rites, but this is a costly affair and not everyone can afford
it. Most of the Gorkhalis in Mizoram are poor and politically exposed.
After incessant pressure, however, a site in Sairang, 19 kilometres from
Aizawl, has been earmarked for cremation, but the state is unwilling to
finance the construction of necessary infrastructure, such as roads to
the site.
What the Gorkhali civil society in Mizoram has not taken up are the
issues of assimilation. Cultural assimilation for Gorkhalis, some of
whom have been in the state for four generations, has been worrisome in
recent times. Some members from the community have already assimilated
into the Mizo mainstream, accepting the Mizo culture and lifestyle and
even giving Mizo names to their children. Even though Gorkhalis believe
that inter-marriage and assimilation is a matter of personal choice,
they acknowledge the threat to their culture. After emigration,
integration into Mizo society is the second factor in having kept the
number of Gorkhalis stagnant over half a century.
It is an unfortunate fact that Gorkhalis, despite being legal citizens
in Mizoram, now lack political representation within the state. Although
the Indian government clearly recognises any Gorkhali who has resided
in Indian territories since or prior to the promulgation of its
Constitution in 1950 as an Indian citizen, this notification appears
toothless where the status of Gorkhalis in Mizoram is concerned. Even
the education ministry of Mizoram places Gorkhalis in secondary and
tertiary groups of consideration during admissions for medical and
engineering colleges. The only way forward is to allow Gorkhalis to live
as equal citizens of the state by ending ethnic discrimination and
granting them OBC status.
~ N William Singh is an assistant professor of sociology at
Pachhunga University College (Mizoram University) and a research scholar
at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Presently, he is a DAAD
fellow at Frei University, Berlin.
