Pawan Kumar Chamling served Sikkim as chief minister for over 24 years.

After serving Sikkim as chief minister for over 24 years, Pawan Kumar Chamling on Saturday said he respects the mandate of the people and is ready to discharge the role of an opposition leader.

Mr Chamling was the Chief Minister since December 1994. His party, the Sikkim Democratic Front, has been defeated by the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) in the recently held assembly election.

"I'm a soldier of democracy. I will stay wherever the people keep me. This time they want me to be in the opposition and I respect that mandate," he said in a Facebook post.

"Now I shall show what opposition is and what its real role is," the outgoing chief minister said.

He interacted with senior officials and thanked them for their cooperation in running the government for around 25 years.

Bagging 15 seats in the 32-member assembly, the Sikkim Democratic Front has lost to the SKM which secured 17 seats in the recently held election.