Nepal is facing a moment of reckoning

THE GenZ protest launched by Hami Nepal, an NGO, three days ago, against nepotism and corruption has swept from power the entirety of the Nepalese political élite. This was demonstrated by the torching of the offices of the Nepali Congress (NC), the Communist Party of Nepal-United Marxist-Leninist (UML) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre). Besides, the houses of several prominent politicians were burnt, vandalised or stoned.Nepal's premiership has changed nine times since 2015. Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli of the UML served as PM four times since, for a total period of one-and-a-half months short of six years.Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) of the Maoist Centre served twice, as did Sher Bahadur Deuba of the NC. Sushil Koirala of the NC served once.Power has rotated among the three major parties because of the opportunistic alliances forged by them without any ideological affinity or programmatic consensus. They played musical chairs for sharing of the spoils of office.Disaffection had been simmering in Nepal for several years, and the banning of 26 social media platforms — ostensibly to protect national security and combat online hate, false news, cybercrime and misinformation — triggered the protests.Endemic corruption, nepotism, inequality and misgovernance had angered the people of Nepal. The three main political parties have been irreparably damaged, at least in the short to medium term, unless new faces emerge.Government law enforcement viciously cracked down on the peaceful assemblage that was proceeding towards the Nepalese Parliament House in New Baneshwar, Kathmandu. By the end of the police firing, there were 19 persons killed and nearly 400 injured. A DSP-level officer, who had reportedly served in Oli's personal security staff, allegedly gave the firing order.The previous violence on a similar scale was seen two decades ago, at the time of the Jana Andolan. Nineteen persons had then lost their lives over a period of 19 to 20 days. On September 8, the same number of people died in two hours.Never before have public protests in Nepal resulted in so many casualties in such a short period of time.Hami Nepal had confined the march to those less than 28 years old. The youth wanted to be visible and were hoping for a better Nepal. Among those shot were schoolchildren in uniform. The resulting revulsion led to lawlessness and mayhem the following day.Although Hami Nepal had discouraged the participation of the older citizenry and had specifically asked the youth wings of political parties to keep away from the march on Monday, as with all such apolitical, spontaneous movements, vested interests would have taken advantage of the inept handling by the Nepalese government and infiltrated the ranks of the protesters.The lesson from what has happened in Nepal is that absolute political power is ephemeral. Just last week, a confident and dapper Oli, sporting dark glasses, was visible in the second or third row at the victory parade in Beijing to commemorate the Second World War, walking on the red carpet behind China’s President Xi Jinping and the North Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un (the only other South Asian leader at the parade was Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif).Thereafter, a UML convention, on Oli's return from China, decided to amend its 70-year age limit for leadership positions, enabling leaders to serve for more than two terms. Oli's position was apparently strengthened.Ironically, his career, punctuated by a 14-year jail sentence and writing of revolutionary poetry on cigarette packets while incarcerated, has come to a sudden end.An unsettled Nepal will seriously jeopardise Indian interests. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has rightly underlined that stability, peace and prosperity of Nepal are of "utmost importance" to India. India must also indicate support for democracy, republicanism and the supremacy of popular will.The destruction of public property wrought two days ago in 10-11 hours surpassed that in the 10-11 years of the Maoist civil war. The structures set ablaze included the Singha Durbar, the seat of the Nepalese government, the Sanghiya Sansad, the Federal Parliament, and Sheetal Niwas, the presidential palace.No Nepalese political leader of note is now in his own or official residence. Violence did not abate even after the revocation of the social media sites shutdown order and Oli's resignation.The Nepal Army, under General Ashok Raj Sigdel, has taken charge of law and order and will, hopefully, heal India's anguished neighbour.The killings by Nepal's Armed Police Force three days ago are reminiscent of events in Dhaka last year. Although some similarities exist, the conditions in Nepal and Bangladesh differ.The snowballing nationwide protests beginning with students, the exit of the incumbent PM, the army playing a stabilising role and the appointment of a transitional government seem to follow a familiar pattern.The young and articulate mayor of Kathmandu, BalenShah, was widely expected to be chosen as the head of the interim government — his reputation as a hip-hop rapper, who obtained his MTech degree from Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum, precedes him. However, Sushila Karki, the first woman Chief Justice of Nepal was on Monday evening named as the head of the interim government.In Bangladesh, the ageing head of the interim government, Muhammad Yunus, has mismanaged the transition. With her considerable experience, Karki, 73, is expected to do much better."Nothing can stop a revolution in Nepal," Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to Jayaprakash Narayan in November 1950, adding, "except the folly of those supporting it."It was a turbulent period in Nepal's history when King Tribhuvan was in New Delhi and the Mukti Sena, the liberation army of the Nepali Congress, was waging an armed struggle against the Rana government. Meanwhile, Nehru was engaged in delicate negotiations to arrive at an amicable settlement.Nehru's comment was made at a different time. After the recent bloodshed, the Nepalese are hopeful of cleaner politics and an improved Nepal.Rebuilding Nepal's polity and economy will be arduous. With its multi-layered partnership, India should lend a helping hand.Jayant Prasad is former Ambassador to Nepal.

Nepal is facing a moment of reckoning

Jayant Prasad

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