New Delhi: In a huge development, the Supreme Court on Wednesday removed the observations in its judgment which described Sikkimese-Nepalese persons as “people of foreign origin.”
The Supreme Court’s January 13 verdict over tax laws had caused furore in Sikkim following a controversial portion in the judgment authored by Justice Nagarathna, which said: “Therefore, there was no difference made out between the original inhabitants of Sikkim, namely the Bhutia-Lepchas and the persons of foreign origin settled in Sikkim like the Nepalis or persons of Indian origin who had settled down in Sikkim generations back.”
Following massive protests, the Union of India, the State of Sikkim and third parties filed applications seeking modifications.
The judgment was delivered by a bench comprising Justices MR Shah and BV Nagarathna. The bench, initially, agreed to remove the part “the persons of foreign origin settled in Sikkim like the Nepalis”. However, Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta requested that the entire sentence be deleted.
Numerous protests had erupted in Sikkim following the January 13 order, with CM Prem Singh Golay and ex-CM Pawan Chamling blaming each other for the fiasco.
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