2024-06-02 09:22:11
NEW DELHI: Prem Singh Tamang is expected to become the new chief minister of Sikkim for the second time. His party, the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM), won 17 out of 32 Assembly seats in 2019 and is now poised to secure another landslide victory in 2024.
Who is Prem Singh Tamang? Here’s everything you need to know:
Prem Singh Tamang also known as P. S. Golay was born on February 10, 1968, in Soreng, West Sikkim.
He started his career as a government employee and later became involved in politics. In 1993, he founded the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) political party.
Tamang has been elected to the Sikkim Legislative Assembly multiple times, starting in 1994 and again in 2019.
Record-breaking achievement
He won against Pawan Chamling of the SDF, who holds the record as the country’s longest-serving chief minister, having secured five consecutive terms spanning just over 24 years.
He began his professional journey as a school teacher. At just 26, he was elected to the Assembly in 1994 as an SDF candidate. He served as a Minister with various ministries for three consecutive terms until 2009.
Cow distribution scam
In 2017, he was jailed for misappropriating Rs 9.5 lakh in government funds related to a cow distribution scheme. The scam occurred between 1994 and 1999 when he was the minister of animal husbandry. He was released from prison on August 10, 2018.