India Reacts to Maoist Victory
New Delhi Respond's to Nepal's Changing Political Scence
Indian government has announced that it is willing to work together with the Maoists but powerful opposition parties are not happy to see red storm rising in Nepal.
Nepal’s Maoists' victory in recently concluded Constituent Assembly (CA) elections surprised many within the country and around the world. In neighboring India the unexpected win of the former rebels shocked the establishment which for long believed that the Maoists would be rejected by Nepal’s voters.
Moving On
As the election results started to come in, then Indian ambassador to Nepal, Shiv Shankar Mukherjee, was quick to spot the change in Nepal’s landscape. Times of India reported on April 15th, five days after the polls, that the Ambassador had contacted the Maoists and was willing to work together with the former rebels.
Pranab Mukherjee, India foreign minister later said that the poll results, no matter who the winner is, signal a positive turn for Nepal. Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Sitaram Yechury also emphasized a close working relationship between India and Nepal’s new government which the Maoists are likely to lead. On a two day visit to Nepal, Yechury met with country’s leaders including Prime Minister Girija Koirala, Maoist chairman Prachanda and Communist Party Nepal( United Marxist and Lennist)’s Madhav Kumar Nepal to discuss formation of new government and drafting new constitution.
Opposition Not Happy
As India’s government is getting ready to work together with the Maoists, the country’s opposition parties lead by right wing nationalist Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) is decidedly unhappy. According to the Hindu, BJP’s Yogi Adityanath warned New Delhi that a “red” Nepal could embolden Maoists and Naxalites rebels in various parts of India. He said that “if Indian government could declare Indian Maoists and Naxalites as terrorists, why Maoists in Nepal are not declared a terrorist outfit?”, suggesting that accepting Nepal’s Maoists as legitimate political organization would send mixed signals to India’s rebels and weaken the government actions against them.
Hindu groups in India are also alarmed at the prospect of a communist ruled Nepal. World Hindu Federation International has said that it will launch a campaign to support monarchy in Nepal. Vishwa Hindu Parisad’s International president Ashok Singhal denounced Nepal’s interim government decision to declare the country secular. According to the Hindustantimes, Sighal said that the move “is a conspiracy to destroy Hinduism in Nepal. Maoists plan to repeat what China had done in Tibet.”
The Naxal Question
Questions raised by the BJP over Nepal’s Maoists and India’s Naxal’s possible nexus were rebuffed by the Indian minister of state for home Sriprakash Jaiswal during Rajya Sabha’s(India’s Council of States) session. Times of India reported that Jaiswal said there is no evidence to prove that the Naxals and the Maoists in Nepal are working together.
