Kazi Lhendup Dorji
| Kazi Lhendup Dorjee Khangsarpa | |
|---|---|
| 1st Chief Minister of Sikkim | |
|
In office 16 May 1975 – 18 August 1979 |
|
| Preceded by | New Post |
| Succeeded by | Nar Bahadur Bhandari |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
October 11, 1904 Pakyong, East Sikkim, India |
| Died | July 28, 2007 (aged 102) Kalimpong, West Bengal |
| Political party |
Indian National Congress (after 1975) Sikkim National Congress (before 1975) |
| Spouse(s) | Kazini Elisa Maria |
| Residence | Gangtok, Sikkim, India |
Kazi Lhendup Dorjee (October 11, 1904 – July 28, 2007), also spelled Kazi Lhendup Dorji or Kazi Lhendup Dorji Khangsarpa, was the first chief minister of Sikkim from 1975 to 1979 after its union with India. He was popularly known as Kazi Saab in Sikkim.
Kazi Lhendup Dorjee was born in 1904 in Pakyong, East Sikkim, Sikkim. He was born into the Khangsarpa family, who were Sikkimese nobility. He was of Lepcha origin. Kazi Lhendup Dorji Khangsarpa entered the Rumtek monastery at the age of 6 years. His uncle, Tshurfuk Lama Rabden Dorji was the then Head Lama of the monastery and Lhendup became his disciple. Sidkeong Tulku Namgyal, then maharaja of Sikkim, while visiting the monastery took a great liking to the hong monk Lhendup and took him to Gangtok, where he placed him in a Tibetan School. At the age of 16, Kazi Lhendup returned to Rumtek monastery and under strict training for priesthood for two years. Thereafter on completion of his training he succeeded as the Head Lama of Rumtek monastery and its estates on the retirement of Lama Ugen Tenzing. Kazi Lhendup remained as the Head Lama in Rumtek monastery for 8 years and then left the monastery to work with his brother the late Kazi Phag Tshering, who founded the Young Men Buddhist Association at Darjeeling. The two brothers founded a large number of schools in West Sikkim and were instrumental in bringing about a number of social and other reforms.
Dorjee founded the Sikkim Praja Mandal in 1945 and served as its first president. Dorjee also became president of the Sikkim State Congress in 1953 and served as president until 1958.
In 1962, Dorjee helped to found the Sikkim National Congress political party. The Sikkim National Congress was founded by Dorjee as a non-communal political party. The unity themed political platform of the party helped the Sikkim National Congress to win eight of the eighteen seats up for grabs in Sikkim's third general election. The Sikkim National Congress merged with India's Congress Party in the 1970s following Sikkim's annexation by India. Dorjee also formed the Sikkim Council to promote "communal harmony."
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