World
Explained: Why Movement To Restore Monarchy And ‘Hindu Rashtra’ Status Is Gaining Momentum In Nepal
Pro-monarchy demonstration in Kathmandu.
Nepal’s capital city Kathmandu was rocked by massive demonstrations Thursday (23 November) demanding restoration of monarchy and Nepal’s status as a ‘Hindu’ state.
Tens of thousands of people from all walks of life, many from other provinces of the country, marched down the streets of the national capital and clashed with the police who had to resort to a baton charge and fire tear gas canisters.
The demonstrators, loosely organised under a movement that goes by the name of Rashtra, Rashtriyata, Dharma-Sanskriti Aur Nagarik Bachau Andolan (Movement for Protection of Nation, Nationalism, Religion, Culture and Citizens’), also clashed with cadres of the opposition Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist), or CPN(UML).
The movement is led by maverick businessman Durga Prasain, who is demanding that the coalition government headed by Maoist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who is better known by his nom de guerre ‘Prachanda’, steps down.
Spurred by the public support for the demands, which include replacement of the present system of governance, the movement’s organisers have planned a series of protests in the national capital, as well as other major cities over the next few days.
Prasain wants the country’s current Constitution (adopted in 2015) be replaced with the 1990 Constitution that was promulgated by the then King Birendra.
The 1990 Constitution, which was repealed in 2007 and ultimately replaced by the 2015 Constitution, paved the way for the Himalayan kingdom turning into a Constitutional monarchy, with an elected parliament and human and political rights enshrined in the Constitution.
The momentum that Prasain’s movement has gained over the past few weeks has caught the political, bureaucratic and security establishments in Nepal by surprise. The movement is now posing a real threat to the government and the current political order.
Reasons Behind The Movement Gaining Momentum:
One, there is a groundswell of anger in Nepal over the failure of the political parties — both ruling and opposition — to deliver.
All political parties are popularly perceived as corrupt and politicians are seen as unscrupulous, power-hungry and unethical.
The constant jockeying for power in blatant disregard for political morality among the country’s top politicians, and the resultant frequent political uncertainties, have left a major section of Nepal’s populace disgruntled.
The present political system is widely viewed as dysfunctional and designed to serve the interests of the country’s politicians.
Two, Nepal is beset with acute unemployment which, along with galloping inflation, a crippling financial crisis and poor governance has generated public anger against the ‘system’.
The country’s economic condition, lack of proper physical infrastructure outside the Kathmandu Valley, poor healthcare and education facilities and a rudimentary social security network that is dysfunctional, is making people lose faith fast in the current parliamentary democratic system.
Three, lakhs of people all over the country have been robbed off their hard-earned savings by cooperatives and microfinance companies that have powerful politicians as their patrons. This has also generated a wave of anger.
Four, the angry and disgruntled masses of Nepal, staring at a bleak future, have started believing that a Constitutional monarchy would be best suited for the country.
The overwhelmingly Hindu population of the country look upon the King as a living embodiment of Bhagwan Vishnu.
They are veering around to the belief that the unceremonious overthrow of King Gyanendra in 2008 was bad for the country.
Resentment among large sections of Hindus is also growing over the country turning secular in 2007. This change of status from a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ opened the doors to Christian and Muslim evangelists who have, taking advantage of poverty in the country, converted many to Christianity and Islam through allurements.
That is creating social tensions with the new converts even attacking Hindu places of worship.
That is why the demand for making Nepal a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ once again is gaining traction.
How The Pro-Monarchy Movement Started:
Prasain had cordial ties with CPN(UML) chief Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli. But the two fell out over a year ago and since then, Prasain has turned a bitter critic of not only Oli, but also the present system of governance.
Prasain levelled allegations of corruption against Oli — he accused Oli of amassing huge wealth and investing the ill-gotten wealth in properties and other ventures in Cambodia, an allegation that Oli has vociferously contested.
But the allegations stuck. Prasain’s opposition to Oli soon transformed into opposition to the current political system in Nepal and then the ruling coalition led by ‘Prachanda’.
Prasain realised that people were angry with the present crop of politicians and the present system of governance had failed to deliver.
He thus tapped into this popular anger and, using his own resources, launched small movements in various parts of the country. Those movements were rehearsals of sorts for the massive agitation launched in Kathmandu Thursday (23 November).
Small demonstrations were held all over the country and fuelled by social media, Prasain’s movement caught the imagination of a huge number of people, especially the country’s unemployed youth and the unhappy poor.
Prasain gained a huge fan following in social media, especially Facebook and TikTok; his followers outnumber those of all politicians. Videos of his speeches and statements criticising the country’s politicians and the present system of governance have garnered millions of views.
The movement, fuelled by a social media storm, caught the imagination of the masses. A few other prominent businessmen and philanthropists of Nepal who are also unhappy with the present system of governance have become the silent benefactors of the movement.
Though the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), which also wants the monarchy back and Nepal’s status as a ‘Hindu Rashtra’ restored, has not extended support to the movement officially, a number of RPP leaders are covertly aiding the movement.
How The Government Reacted:
Initially, the federal government led by ‘Prachanda’ did not curb the movement. That led Oli to allege that Prime Minister Dahal and the Nepali Congress (the largest party in the ruling coalition) were silently supporting Prasain.
But once the movement became popular and demands for the resignation of the government, as well as replacement of the current parliamentary system with a Constitutional monarchy started being raised, alarm bells started ringing within the government.
But the Prime Minister and other leaders of the ruling coalition failed to gauge the popularity and spread of the movement.
Once they started getting intelligence reports about the movement of thousands of people from other parts of the country to Kathmandu for Thursday’s demonstrations, they tried to thwart Prasain’s plans.
Belatedly, earlier this week, the government banned TikTok through which Prasain’s movement has garnered huge popular support. But the ban had little impact and many started using virtual private networks to get around the ban and access the popular social media platform.
The government also tried to stop people from coming into Kathmandu for Thursday’s demonstrations. That, too, had a limited effect with most travellers succeeding in outfoxing the police at checkposts on roads leading to the country’s capital.
The ruling coalition politicians were caught by surprise by the massive show of force on the streets of Kathmandu Thursday.
The fact that supporters of Prasain’s movement vastly outnumbered cadres of the CPN(UML) who had also hit the streets to counter Prasain came as a shocking reality check for the country’s politicians.
The CPN(UML), a cadre based party, claims membership of lakhs across the country and is well-known for holding debilitating demonstrations and protests.
That the cadres of a well-established political party could be outnumbered on the streets of the capital by volunteers of a loosely-organised movement without any organisational structure worth the name has caused consternation in the leadership of the CPN(UML) as well as other parties.
Not only that, the volunteers of Prasain’s movement attacked CPN(UML) cadres who have a fearsome reputation for indulging in violence.
A sense of dread has descended on Nepal’s political parties, especially the constituents of the ruling coalition. That’s because Nepal has a history of street demonstrations gaining massive momentum and resulting in the collapse of ruling regimes.
Prachanda and his party colleagues (at the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre) as well as leaders of the Nepali Congress are thus filled with confusion and also consternation, perhaps in equal measure.
They are not sure on how to tackle Prasain’s movement which has acquired a life and momentum of its own. A brutal crackdown, they know, will fuel more public anger. But allowing the movement to continue could take Nepal down the path of uncertainty and endanger their own future.
The government did take steps early Friday (24 November) to curb Prasain’s movement by placing him under an unofficial house arrest. But that did not deter his supporters from holding massive demonstrations at Tinkune area of Kathmandu from early Friday noon.
A section of the political establishment in the country feels that the movement should be allowed to run its course. In the absence of an organisational structure and a chain of command, as well as limited finances, the movement will fizzle out after some time.
But others, including a section of the security and intelligence establishments of the country, feel that if left untackled, the movement will only gain in strength and can also take the country to a state of anarchy and lawlessness.
Many in the country’s intelligence agencies and the powerful army suspect that Prasain’s movement is being funded by external entities. But that remains only a suspicion as of now.
Meanwhile, King Gyanendra’s public engagements have been witnessing a lot of public support of late. Tens of thousands of people thronged the streets of Jhapa, the eponymous headquarters of Nepal’s southwestern district, when he went there Friday (24 November) to unveil a statue of King Prithvi Narayan Shah, the founder of modern Nepal.
More than 8,000 two-wheelers and over a thousand vehicles formed the massive motorcade that accompanied King Gyananedra to the unveiling ceremony.
A couple of weeks ago, the deposed king’s visit to a popular spot in Nepal drew thousands of cheering people.
All this bodes ill for the country’s politicians who, according to popular consensus, have failed the people of Nepal.
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