Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Editorial

There is no denying that the towering political personality of the sitting Prime Minister Shri Girija Prasad Koirala brought all the political parties together in order to bring to an end to the King’s direct rule in the country. In fact, Koirala’s magnetic personality glued all the political actors of the country and made them feel that if they were to exist as a political party and if they wanted a democratic system of governance in the country, they had to come together forgetting their political platforms for a while until a collapse of the King’s regime were brought into effect.

This much is sure that Koirala’s personality even brought the ferocious rebels by convincing them that it was time to come together and form a morcha-or say front against the King’s regime and settle the conflict that had plagued the nation for well over a decade or so once and for all.

Koirala came out with flying colors. However, how he bagged victory in his endeavors is a different story that more often than not the country’s media men prefer to ignore or at best do not want to excavate the internal maneuverings of some countries that made Koirala a national hero which he continues to be so even today.

The fact that is being deliberately ignored by Nepal’s interested quarters is that it was the Washington-London-Delhi axis that maneuvered the Nepali politics in such a way that the King have had no option left other than to loosen his grip what he had over the country’s power structure. To be honest, it was Delhi and Delhi alone, one among the three in the said axis, whose unilateral/direct support to the SPA agitators made the King feel the heat of the agitation and what else he could have done under a hardly pressed situation other than to announce that he was thus retiring from his job as an active monarch.

Surprising though it may appear, however, the fact is that a section of the intellectuals and at best a section of the Nepali media give to understand that it was Koirala’s lone efforts that brought the rebels to the negotiating table which it is not. Many would believe that it was Koirala untiring efforts convinced the rebels to come to Kathmandu and shun the politics of violence and terror. Similarly, some would even believe that Koirala alone had remained instrumental in convincing the rebels that if they shunned politics of violence and terror they would be provided an honorific position in the affairs of the State at a later stage.

On the surface whatever has been mentioned in the aforesaid paragraphs are true and hence should demand no debate or whatsoever in this regard. But the story does not end here, though.

The fact is that New Delhi remained instrumental visibly in bringing, first the diametrically opposite parties together. How New Delhi succeeded in doing this marvel would demand a separate debate which is not of our concern here. Secondly, let us admit the fact that the November 22, 2005 agreement in between the SPA and the Maoists became only possible through the kind courtesy of the New Delhi establishment. This agreement formed the basis, thirdly, for the over throw of the King’s regime. Later, how the King was cornered by New Delhi and how the uprising in Kathmandu took a different turn is not a matter of the distant past and hence one could recall the tumultuous days that elevated the ranks of the present day leaders.

Thanks that the Maoists too effected changes in their mode of politics and assured the nation that they henceforth would abide by the established norms and the values of democratic system. Whether they would do so as per their commitments expressed through various agreements and treaties with the State made in the past will have to be watched.

The crucial and the needed overt and covert role that India played throughout the entire game was through its the then foreign secretary, Monsieur Shyam Saran, whose parleys with both the SPA leaders in New Delhi and again with the Maoists leaders right in Delhi was simply superb, politically speaking.

It were these political maneuverings of Shyam Saran that, we are confident, provided a final blow to the institution of the monarchy which have had to yield to the demands of the SPA-M.

Be that as it may, even if these inner maneuverings were there, one has to admit the fact that it was Koirala’s unbending political standing and his personality which was not only taken in good faith by commanders in New Delhi but also trusted by the entire SPA paraphernalia later to be joined in by the rebels as well.

All put together, New Delhi cashed in upon Koirala’s political persona and hence the success. Had there been no support from New Delhi in the entire play, Koirala’s endeavors would have taken a different turn. Perhaps a negative one.

Thus the institution of the monarchy had to kneel down which was and is there for all to see.

But Koirala’s recent political overtures does provide an indication that he just wanted to weaken the institution and not demolish the entire institution as some have been demanding from the very out set.

It is here Koirala’s political acumen will be tested as to how he champions the case for the continuation of the institution in the country after the CA polls even in the current hostile context that is prevailing against the monarchy.

Having said that, it would be still unwise and an act of folly not to salute the hilarious courage exhibited by Prime Minister Koirala in managing the complex issues that had been bedeviling the entire country for well over a decade or so. Nevertheless, if the Prime Minister says that he did not enjoy Delhi support in a televised address as understood in many a political quarters in Nepal , we would take our story back with apology. The crude fact is that no body talks of this hidden support extended to the SPA-M by Delhi for unknown reasons. However, history would perhaps record the entire inner maneuvering that came across the border during those politically confused days. Let historians speak.