A pro-monarchist carries a poster of the late King Mahendra Shah during a protest in Kathmandu, Nepal 28 March. Resurgent royalists have political observers in Kathmandu wondering about the possibility of a return to monarchy in Nepal.
A pro-monarchist carries a poster of the late King Mahendra Shah during a protest in Kathmandu, Nepal 28 March. Resurgent royalists have political observers in Kathmandu wondering about the possibility of a return to monarchy in Nepal. IMAGO/NurPhoto

Pranaya Rana on Nepal’s royalist resurgence: State of Southasia #21

Young people at the pro-monarchy rally did not profess a desire for the monarchy but complained against Nepal’s main political parties, says the journalist
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In early March this year, a massive gathering of some 10,000 royalist supporters gathered to greet Nepal's former king, Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah, as he returned to the capital Kathmandu from the city of Pokhara. The rally had political observers in Kathmandu wonder about the possibility of a return to monarchy in Nepal.

On Friday, 28 March, a similar pro-royalist rally in Kathmandu turned violent. Pro-monarchy protesters destroyed vehicles, looted a department store and attacked the offices  of two political parties. Two people were killed that day. One was a driver who, by all accounts, was a bystander shot by security forces as he tried to flee the scene. Another was a TV journalist who died after being trapped inside a building that was torched. 

Some Nepali commentators see the pro-monarchy movement and that day’s violence as a sign of the people’s discontent with Nepal political establishment and the country’s stuttering economy. But they also point out that the country is doing much better than it was under the Shah monarchy. The journalist and political commentator Pranaya Rana spoke to many young people who were at the pro-monarchy rally who did not profess a deep desire for the monarchy. Instead, their complaints were against Nepal’s three main political parties. 

In this episode of State of Southasia, Rana speaks to Nayantara Narayanan about the resurgence of the royalist movement in Nepal, who the key actors in the movement are, the role of the Gorakhnath temple and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in India, and what people from different sections of Nepal really want. He says that people fear that a return to the monarchy will mean that the rights of the Hindu communities living in the hills will be prioritised over others. “Most people do not want a single overarching identity that says that this is what it means to be a Nepali,” he says.

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State of Southasia releases a new interview every two weeks.

Episode notes:

Pranaya Rana’s recommendations:

The Bloodstained Throne: Struggles for Power in Nepal – Baburam Acharya (non-fiction)

The Nepal Nexus: An Inside Account of the Maoists, the Durbar and New Delhi  – Sudheer Sharma (non-fiction)

Rajagunj: Pooja, Sir: Deepak Rounier (film)

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