Date for Nepal's Transformation
Country Gets Ready to Abolish 240-year Old Monarchy
On May 28th, Nepal is set to announce abolition of centuries old monarchy and declare the country a republic.King Gyanendra is making rounds of temples to save his throne
On May 28th, Nepal’s newly elected Constituent Assembly will meet for the first time at the Birendra International Convention Center (BICC) in Kathmandu. The meeting is widely expected to announce abolition of 240 year old monarchy, as the interim constitution demands.
Change of Guard
Former Maoist rebels who won majority of seats at the Constituent Assembly polls conducted on May 10th have long campaigned against Nepal’s monarchy. One of the major aims of the 10 year long struggle they launched in 1996 was to get rid of the monarchy and to establish a republic.
In 2006 the Maoists signed peace treaty with the Government and entered the political mainstream. They gave up armed struggle for the conventional politics, which then was largely controlled by Nepal’s two major political parties- Nepal Congress and Nepal Communist Party (United Marxist and Leninist).
April 10th Constituent Assembly elections dealt a heavy blow against the established national parties as the former rebels scored impressive victory. Nepali Congress, in the days after Maoists were welcomed into political mainstream, was not very keen on deposing the King and establishing a republic. The party’s leader, Prime Minister Girija Koirala said at several occasions that he supports constitutional monarchy. Now that the Nepalese people have shown that they support the Maoists more, Nepali Congress has come to support the idea of republic.
Unhappy Royalists
With just days left for monarchy to become a party of history in Nepal, royalists who for long believed that the King is rightful ruler of Nepal are unhappy. Despite resounding loss suffered by the royalists at the Constituent Assembly elections, they believe that they still have support among the public and warn against declaring a republic.
Kamal Thapa, chairman of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party Nepal (RPP-N) said on May 12th that “The country might plunge into another big crisis if the King is ousted even before writing a first letter of the new constitution.” An ardent royalist, Thapa served as Home Minister in King Gynandra government after the monarch declared emergency and sacked the government on February 1, 2005. Notorious for this crackdown against political parties and free press, Thapa is said to have met with Maoist Chairman Prachanda to discuss the future of monarchy.
Seeking Divine Intervention
On Monday May12th, King Gyanendra and Queen Komal visited Dakshinkali temple and performed a ritual that is believed to enhance strength and grant one’s wishes. This signals that the King could be hoping for divine intervention to save his reign.
The “panchabali” is a ritual where five animals are sacrificed to please Kali, goddess of power and strength. Animal sacrifice is quite common practice in Nepal’s temples dedicated to goddess Kali and Durga, who represent strength, power and fearlessness.
