Identity and elites in developmental politics: a case study of the “Gorkha” and “Gorkhaland” movements in the eastern parts of India

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article draws attention to the “Gorkha” as a constructed identity, given or adopted by Nepali-speaking community. The idea of “Gorkha” in general and the demand for the territory of “Gorkhaland” of India have remained an elitist project, and the employment of this idea/term “Gorkha” has been a political instrumentalization that failed to bring any form of development. The period of 1980s gave rise to the “Gorkhaland” movement in India for its subjugation and alienation, which sparked questioning about the identity of the Gorkha in Indian politics. The question arises: Why Nepali people are mobilized as “Gorkha” in its history? How is the “Gorkhaland” movement in India a developmental problem in contrast to ethnic politics? This paper is divided into two parts, such as (1) “Gorkha” and its origin in general and (2) Indian “Gorkha” and the “Gorkhaland” demand. The process of such movement led by elites brings both domestic and international attentions due to cross border and regional politics. This paper uses a thematic approach in analyzing the leader’s role in relation to the last Shah King, a recruitment policy of colonial British raj, and legitimization process by the “Gorkha” leaders in the “Gorkhaland” Movement.