SIKKIM: Alarums in Cloudland

When Sikkim's benign and enlightened King Palden Thondup Namgyal was crowned eight years ago in Gang-tok, he offered this pledge for himself and his queen, former New York Debutante Hope Cooke: "Together may we make Sikkim a paradise on earth." Today, Indian troops patrol his capital and his dreams of paradise look dark.

Sikkim's precarious position on the Tibetan frontier has long worried India, which is responsible for the Himalayan protectorate's foreign relations and defense and keeps a careful eye on domestic affairs as well. The immediate cause for the disturbances, however, is a controversy over Sikkim's...

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