Nepal’s rulers have been suffering from an affliction called Serial Coalition Syndrome. Symptoms include: inability to see beyond personal greed and ambition, amnesia about the national interest, serious addiction to personal power, OCD about money, and wanton political promiscuity.&nbsp;
Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal once again pulled the rug from under his main coalition partner to go off with a former ally whom he has ditched twice before. With this, Nepal has had eight governments in seven years.
The Maoists and the UML had an electoral alliance ahead of the 2017 election, after which they merged their parties. Then they divorced, and now are once more joined in holy matrimony. The country, meanwhile, is back to square one, not that it was faring all that well anyway.
The Nepali Congress (NC), its patriarch and five-time prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba got blindsided once more by Dahal’s checkmate, just as he had been twice before by King Gyanendra.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/catapulting-to-singha-darbar">Catapulting to Singha Darbar</a>, Kunda Dixit
Dahal and Oli now have a new deal of two years each as premier before the 2027 elections. In all likelihood, there will be another coalition shakeup when it is time for Dahal to hand over power to Oli. But this coalition has just 138 votes in Parliament, only enough to win a confidence vote and may not last that long.&nbsp;
However, the crux of the matter is that these coalition reshuffles are of no real concern or significance to ordinary Nepalis, and adds to public disillusionment with the mainstream parties. The RPP and independent mayor Balen Shah have been saying, “Didn’t we tell you there is no hope from these clowns?”
Even the RSP has squandered much of its goodwill because of its leader Rabi Lamichhane's impatience to be Home Minister again so he can launder his tainted image. Dol Prasad Acharya has also been reinstated as Labour Minister despite allegations of conflict of interest over his involvement in a migrant recruiting agency. The only saving grace for the RSP is that MIT-graduate Sumana Shrestha is now Education Minister.
Nepalis will have to continue trying to survive on the brink. Inequity in healthcare will persist, thousands of young Nepalis will migrate overseas every day, only to be fleeced by recruiters and state agencies.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/what-just-happened-in-nepali-politics">What just happened in Nepali politics?</a>, Nepali Times
The new alliance just ensures that Dahal will continue to be prime minister a bit longer. He also gets to put the blame for his government’s failures, underperformance, and major corruption scandals on the NC.&nbsp;
There are only four female ministers in the new Cabinet as coalition partners keep powerful portfolios for the men. It is even worse in the provinces: of the 67 chief ministers and ministers in the seven provinces before the coalition reshuffle, only 16% were women, mostly state ministers.&nbsp;
Women and minorities continue to be useful only to fill quotas. Even so, there are no Dalits in the Cabinet. Token women are handy like this week in the run up to International Women’s Day on 8 March.&nbsp;
And why must provincial governments have to mirror what happens at the centre? Just because there is regime change in Kathmandu, there is no reason why it has to change in Dhangadi. Why does the NC have to sack Maoist ministers from provinces it governs?&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/old-wine-in-old-bottles">Old wine in old bottles</a>, Editorial
The provinces have been given neither the authority nor revenue to govern properly, while corruption has been decentralised. Federalism so far has been a colossal waste of precious resources, where the centre’s inefficiency, incompetence, poor governance is multiplied by seven.
Top leaders are loath to decentralise, and as this week demonstrated, are more power-hungry than ever before. This is against the spirit of federalism and devolution.
Fortunately, many local governments of municipalities have shown accountability and are trying to improve services. If provinces are just going to be rubber stamps of the centre, then we might as well have a two-tier government with the federal government and local municipalities.&nbsp;
Anything goes in Nepali politics, and in power struggles, all is fair. Governance, transparency and accountability are of no consequence. The lives of ordinary Nepalis do not matter. Prime Minister Dahal and his comrades, new and old, could not have made it clearer with the coalition reshuffle.&nbsp;
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/whose-country-is-it-anyway">Whose country is it anyway?</a>, Editorial
Sonia Awale

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What difference does it make?

Dairy farmers have been dumping milk on the streets because they are owed Rs6 billion by buyers. Victims of loan sharks and cooperatives have stormed Parliament.&nbsp; And that was just this week. Nepalis are increasingly exasperated with a government formed just a year-and-a-half ago, and with three more years to go for the next elections. The problem stems from the third largest party, the Maoist Centre, having the prime ministerial and other powerful posts in government. The Nepali Congress (NC), the biggest party by far in Parliament, is behaving like a minor partner.&nbsp; Last week, there were vociferous demands at the NC General Committee meeting to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/unconventional-convention">abandon the coalition in the next election</a>, and this week the Maoist standing committee also decided to go it alone in the 2027 election. &nbsp; While both parties say they will not leave the current coalition, it is clear that the alliance is fraying at the seams.&nbsp; “The Maoists and Congress threatening to contest elections independently is more an election strategy than a signal that the coalition is falling apart,” says analyst Indra Adhikari.&nbsp; She adds, “It was more a reassurance to party members at a time of dissatisfaction and uncertainty within parties. Forming electoral alliances and forming coalitions are different matters.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20240301030312_679e8cb5b9a920810276d7820eb5d11e49d326b1218f39c2ae1e254fc75fb126.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20240301030312_679e8cb5b9a920810276d7820eb5d11e49d326b1218f39c2ae1e254fc75fb126" data-rendition-name="original" width="3600" height="1848" loading="lazy" alt="Coalition collision NT"> <figcaption>Victims of loan sharks and cooperatives during a protest Pradarshani Marg. Photo: HARRAM BHETUWAL</figcaption> </figure>  The current coalition of erstwhile extreme Communists with a centre-right Congress could not be more ideologically different. It was cobbled together after the 2022 elections just so that the Maoists would not unite again with the opposition UML to form a powerful leftwing government. The NC, Maoists and the UML’s commitment to contesting the election independently pertain to electoral alliances formed before the polls, not coalitions formed after, Adhikari adds. The Maoist Centre’s two-day standing committee meeting discussed the anti-secular views of some NC members and Deputy Prime Minister Purna Bahadur Khadka's criticism of Maoist guerrilla excesses during the war. &nbsp; There is also mutual suspicion between the Maoists and NC over a deal that fell through involving the NC’s Krishna Prasad Sitaula as National Assembly chair in exchange for a Maoist heading <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/kosi-now-kathmandu-next">Kosi Province</a>. The NC did not back the Maoist candidate, so the Maoists are not supporting Sitaula.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2024030103038_f04c9614d05be89a523282bcf253578166a2163880de41c7fe567098dab92702.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="2024030103038_f04c9614d05be89a523282bcf253578166a2163880de41c7fe567098dab92702" data-rendition-name="original" width="1800" height="1199" loading="lazy" alt="Coalition collision NT"> <figcaption>Nepali Congress leader Krishna Prasad Sitauls spoke at the NC Mahasamiti meeting last week. Photo: MADHV PRASAD GHIMIRE / RSS</figcaption> </figure>  According to a coalition power-sharing pact, Prime Minister Dahal is supposed to hand over the premiership to Sher Bahadur Deuba of the NC and Madhav Kumar Nepal of the Unified Socialists later this year. &nbsp; “Coalitions in countries like ours are at risk of falling apart from the moment they are formed, they do not work without compromise between parties that have different ideologies,” explains Adhikari.&nbsp; UML chair K P Oli is already campaigning for 2027 with a ‘Mission-84’ slogan and likened the coalition to “a lump of ash that will crumble whether it is dry or wet”. Prime Minister Dahal appears to be mulling a Cabinet reshuffle in a bid to keep the coalition together. But his attempt to replace Finance Minister Prakash Sharan Mahat of the NC is getting no support from Deuba.&nbsp; The opposition UML, RSP, and the RPP have all demanded the resignation of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Minister Prakash Jwala of the Unified Socialist, Health and Population Minister Mohan Basnet of the NC, as well as the Maoist Minister of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Sudan Kirati. Minister Jwala was caught up in a riot on the Ring Road in December in which protesters set fire to his car, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/karnali-to-korea-dream-dashed-in-kathmandu">and two people were killed </a>when the police fired at the crowd. An investigation found he disregarded security concerns. Health Minister Basnet is being probed by the anti-corruption bureau over a 2021 procurement of surveillance equipment for the Nepal Telecommunications Authority. And Kirati is implicated in a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/lharkyal-lama-s-lumbini-inc">scandal involving a private contract in Lumbini</a>.&nbsp; There were heated exchanges in Parliament this week as coalition MPs accused the opposition of the pot calling the kettle black. The UML has skeletons in its closet too, and the RSP’s Rabi Lamichhane is embroiled in controversies involving a cooperative and his citizenship. Says Indra Adhikari: “There is absolutely a need for leaders to reflect, take responsibility for the consequences of their actions, and be held accountable. The country's crises are too important.”

Shristi Karki

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Coalition collision

Sabir Khan was riding his motorbike in Parsa on Tuesday when he was stopped by several men and boys wielding sticks and saffron flags.&nbsp;
The encounter was captured on video. The men are heard forcing &nbsp;Khan to venerate the Hindu god Ram, to which he replies that he has an urgent errand up the road.&nbsp;
“I don’t care how important your errand is, you don’t get to leave without saying Jai Shri Ram,” one of the men says. Another man smacks Khan on the head.&nbsp;
The audio cuts off at this point, but Khan must have eventually agreed to the threats, because he is allowed to ride away and the men begin to chant "Jai Shri Ram" around a burning tyre on the road.&nbsp;
Such video clips have become commonplace across the border in India, but that it is happening in Nepal confirms what many had warned about: that India’s Hindutva ideology would spread to Nepal. &nbsp;
This week, there were communal clashes at Ishnath Municipality in Rautahat over a procession to immerse the idol of goddess Saraswati. The tensions spread to Birganj, where groups staged demonstrations, prompting authorities to enforce curfews. &nbsp;
Social media is awash with posts by sympathisers from across the border, many with sentiments like ‘Nepal was much more beautiful when it was not secular’, and praising Nepali activists for backing restoration of Hindu state.
“In Nepal, Hindutva as a political ideology is still nascent. Its seeds have been planted on a soil fertilised by democratic decay,” wrote Birganj-based media commentator Chandra Kishore recently in his column, Borderlines, in this paper.&nbsp;
India’s shift to far-right Hindu nationalism under Prime Minister Modi has emboldened those with a similar ideology in Nepal, and this is mixed up with a call also for the restoration of the monarchy.&nbsp;
India’s opposition parties have tried but failed to stop the juggernaut of political Hindutva. And here in Nepal, leaders across the political spectrum have done little to quell the rise of religious intolerance and extremism.&nbsp;
Instead, some parties are pushing faith-based politics to endear themselves to capitalise on what they see as an anti-secular vote bank during the next election.&nbsp;
Nepal’s avowed Maoist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal sought photo-ops clad in saffron in temples in Nepal and India. Former communist Prime Minister K P Oli attempted to provoke Hindus in Nepal and India by claiming that Lord Ram was actually born in Nepal. Nepali Congress (NC) leader Sher Bahadur Deuba expressed support for removing secularism from the Constitution during an all-party meeting last year.&nbsp;
The call to restore a Hindu nation loomed large at the NC party convention in Godavari this week (pictured). This appears to be driven by Deuba’s need to pull the rug from underneath anti-secularist forces in his own party, as well as the growing popularity of the Hindu monarchist RPP.
NC lawmaker and central committee member Shankar Bhandari used the party’s convention to launch a campaign to include the restoration of a Hindu state at the party convention.&nbsp;
In response, NC vice chair Purna Bahadur Khadka wrote in his policy proposal presented to a closed meeting of the NC: ‘The people seem to be delirious with the need to adopt populism and regress to authoritarianism.’&nbsp;
Bhandari’s proposal was rejected by the party leadership. But the NC in general and Deuba in particular have bigger fish to fry. Deuba is being challenged by not-so-young Turks like NC General Secretary Gagan Thapa, who is pushing the party to abandon its alliance with the Maoists in the next election.
Growing calls in the NC to go it alone have sent shock waves in the Maoist Centre, which is the third largest party in Parliament by a wide margin after the NC and opposition UML.
Prime Minister Dahal also faces calls from within his party about the partnership with the NC, and has been hinting that all is not well within the coalition, and that he may reshuffle the Cabinet.&nbsp;
“The Nepali Congress had no choice but to form an electoral alliance with the Maoists due to special political circumstances. But upset voters see it as an ideological contamination of our party,” Gagan Thapa told the convention. &nbsp;
For now, both Dahal and Deuba &nbsp;maintain their commitment to the coalition because a breakup would mean that the premiership-sharing deal between Dahal, Deuba, and CPN-Unified Socialist chair Madhav Kumar Nepal would no longer stand, preventing Deuba from being prime minister for a sixth time.&nbsp;
Meanwhile, NC General Secretary Bishwa Prakash Sharma, who has been an ally of Gagan Thapa, differed about going it alone in the next election. &nbsp;&nbsp;
Said Sharma: “Our future electoral alliance or the lack thereof is a bridge we will cross when we get to it four years from now.”

Unconventional convention

Since returning from this year’s World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, I have been asked repeatedly for my biggest takeaways. Among the most widely discussed issues this year was artificial intelligence – especially generative AI (‘GenAI’). With the recent adoption of large language models (ChatGPT) there is much hope – and hype – about what AI could do for productivity and economic growth in the future.
But our world is dominated far more by human stupidity than by artificial intelligence. The proliferation of <a href="https://www.project-syndicate.org/onpoint/megathreats-remain-despite-moderation-of-pandemic-and-other-shocks-by-nouriel-roubini-2023-11">megathreats</a> – each an element in the broader ‘polycrisis’ – confirms that our politics are too dysfunctional, and our policies too misguided, to address even the most serious and obvious risks to our future.
These include climate change, failed states which will make waves of climate refugees even larger, and recurrent virulent pandemics that could be even more economically damaging than Covid-19.&nbsp;
Making matters worse, dangerous geopolitical rivalries are evolving into new cold wars such as between the United States and China, and into potentially explosive hot wars, like those in Ukraine and the West Asia.&nbsp;
Around the world, rising income and wealth inequality, partly driven by hyper-globalisation and labor-saving technologies, have triggered a backlash against liberal democracy, creating opportunities for populist, autocratic, and violent political movements.
Unsustainable levels of private and public debt threaten to precipitate debt and financial crises, and we may yet see a return of inflation and stagflationary negative aggregate supply shocks. The broader trend globally is toward protectionism, de-globalization, de-coupling, and de-dollarisation.
Moreover, the same brave new AI technologies that could contribute to growth and human welfare also have great destructive potential. They are already being used to push disinformation, deepfakes, and election manipulation into hyperdrive, as well as raising fears about permanent technological unemployment and even starker inequality. The rise of autonomous weapons and AI-augmented cyber-warfare is equally ominous.
Blinded by the dazzle of AI, Davos attendees did not focus on most of these megathreats. This came as no surprise. The WEF zeitgeist is, in my experience, a counter-indicator of where the world is really heading. Policymakers and business leaders are there to flog their books and spew platitudes. They represent the conventional wisdom, which is often based on a rear-window view of global and macroeconomic developments.
There is a very good chance that AI will indeed change the world in the coming decades. But the WEF’s focus on GenAI already seems misplaced, considering that the AI technologies and industries of the future will go far beyond these models. Consider, for example, the ongoing revolution in robotics and automation, which will soon lead to the development of robots with human-like features that can learn and multitask the way we do.
Or consider what AI will do for biotech, medicine, and ultimately human health and lifespans. No less intriguing are the developments in quantum computing, which will eventually merge with AI to produce advanced cryptography and cybersecurity applications.
The same long-term perspective also should be applied to climate debates. It is becoming increasingly likely that the problem will not be resolved with renewable energy – which is growing too slowly to make significant difference – or expensive technologies like carbon capture and sequestration and green hydrogen. Instead, we may see a fusion energy revolution, provided that a commercial reactor can be built in the next 15 years.&nbsp;
This abundant source of cheap, clean energy, combined with inexpensive desalination and agro-tech, would allow us to feed the ten billion people who will be living on the planet by the end of this century.
Similarly, the revolution in financial services will not be centered arounddecentralisedblockchains or cryptocurrencies. Rather, it will feature the kind of AI-enabled centralisedfintech that is already improving payment systems, lending and credit allocation, insurance underwriting, and asset management.&nbsp;
Materials science will lead to a revolution in new components, 3D-printing manufacturing, nanotechnologies, and synthetic biology. Space exploration and exploitation will help us save the planet and find ways to create extra-planetary modes of living.
These and many other technologies could change the world for the better, but only if we can manage their negative side effects, and only if they are used to resolve all the megathreats we face. One hopes that artificial intelligence someday will overcome human stupidity. But it will never get the chance if we destroy ourselves first.
©Project Syndicate
Nouriel Roubini, Professor Emeritus of Economics at New York University’s Stern School of Business, is author of <a href="https://www.littlebrown.com/titles/nouriel-roubini/megathreats/9780316284059/">Megathreats: Ten Dangerous Trends That Imperil Our Future, and How to Survive Them</a> (Little, Brown and Company, &nbsp;2022). <a href="https://nourielroubini.com/">NourielRoubini.com</a>

Artificial Intelligence vs Human Stupidity

It seems like just yesterday that the momentous story broke. Police started investigating the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/rot-at-the-top">fake Bhutanese refugee scandal</a>, and Nepalis held their breath. At last it looked like justice would be done.&nbsp;
Police followed the digital trail from middlemen who hoodwinked hundreds of Nepalis to part with millions of rupees. Phone records and text messages led them to the highest people in the land. Former ministers and secretaries were tracked down and arrested.&nbsp;
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/losing-our-moral-compass">The story</a> was first broken in a piece commissioned by the Centre for Investigative Journalism Nepal, and written by Devendra Bhattarai for Kantipur daily in June. Despite state malfunction, it finally looked like press freedom, democracy and the rule of law were intact in Nepal after all.&nbsp;
Morale in the police and investigation agencies went up, journalists were encouraged that coverage had impact. After all, previous police inspectors and even the Commission on Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) had received the complaints about being swindled by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/in-a-federal-kleptocratic-republic-of-nepal">fake refugee middlemen and their political patrons</a>, but had filed them away.&nbsp;
But it was all too good to last. SSP Manoj KC and AIG Shyam Gyawali, the two police inspectors leading the team investigating the refugee scam, were transferred.&nbsp;
We have since learnt that the Maoist Home Minister was under pressure to do so from topmost Nepali Congress (NC) leaders and their consorts of whom police had evidence of collusion. Not surprisingly, KC was replaced by Basanta Kunwar, the same police inspector who had earlier buried the complaint.
More scandals then erupted, including those involving the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/crime-and-or-punishment-in-nepal">sale of Baluwatar real estate</a> and gold ornaments at Pashupati.&nbsp;
In none of these were Maoist officials involved.&nbsp;
Then, as if on cue, 100kg of gold was found being smuggled from Hong Kong concealed as motorcycle brake pads. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-gets-gold-medal-for-corruption">Investigations led to senior Maoists and their progeny</a>, and it emerged that the organised criminals has used brake pads and vapes numerous times before.&nbsp;
Now, with all three of Nepal’s main parties neck-deep in muck, the scandals cancelled each other out. Backroom deals ensured ‘I will not probe your scandal if you don’t probe mine’.
Fast forward two months: none of these monsoon scandals have come to anything. Some small fish have been netted, other bigger fish are out on bail, but the cases are not going anywhere. This week, the CIAA made a show of framing a sitting Commerce Secretary on an unrelated budget allocation. Its chief is clearly trying to distract us from his earlier cover-up of the Bhutan refugee case.
The media has moved on, social media is captivated by the viral video of the day, and the three main parties are glad Nepalis suffer collective amnesia. Mainstream politicians are back to impunity as usual, using the Constitution Day pardon list to get President Ram Chandra Poudel to release a notorious gangster serving a 20-year jail term for murder.&nbsp;
They are playing politics with rising <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/east-is-east">ethno-religious tensions in Kosi Province</a> and across the Tarai where social networking sites have been weaponised with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/crimson-saffron-and-green">Hindutva hate speech</a>. Throughout all this, the prime minister disappeared for nearly three weeks on a round the world photo-op.
It does not look like the gerontocracy of the NC, the Maoists or the UML have seen the writing on the wall. They were up on the balcony of Gaddi Baithak on Indra Jatra on 28 September (pictured) and must have witnessed the frenzied welcome for Mayor Balen Shah. Still stuck in partisan power struggles, they underestimate the anti-establishment public mood.&nbsp;
Independents and alternative parties are riding a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-populist-party-balenist">populist anti-incumbent wave </a>among Nepali youth. The dinosaurs of Nepali politics are oblivious to the approaching asteroid.&nbsp;

State malfunction

It looks like the whole country is demonstrating on the streets. Ex-king Gyanendra has been attending rallies for the restoration of a Hindu monarchy in Kathmandu, teachers are on the warpath against federal control, striking doctors are protesting gang attacks on hospitals, activist Iih stood for 11 days outside Kathmandu City Hall protesting the mayor’s high-handedness. Meanwhile, on Monday in Birganj there was a different kind of street demonstration – for tolerance and harmony.&nbsp; The municipality took out the rally to douse communal clashes that flared up in Malangwa of Sarlahi district for four days this week, serious enough for a curfew &nbsp;to be clamped. &nbsp; In Birganj, businesses, intellectuals and politicians including Mayor Rajeshman Singh and Deputy Mayor Imtiaz Alam rallied for religious coexistence. Instead of saffron or green, they waved Nepal’s crimson double triangle. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/religiously-following-politics">Religiously following politics</a>, Chandra Kishore Madhes Province borders the Indian state of Bihar, and bonds of kinship, language, culture and trade bind communities in the two countries together. As India prepares for general elections next year, growing persecution of minorities there is starting to infect Nepal as well. Hindus and Muslims in Nepal have lived peacefully for centuries. My own ancestral home is in the village of Balara near Malangwa. My 80-year-old mother still lives there and remembers the Muslim woman who sold her glass bangles.&nbsp; Despite untouchability at the time, she was allowed right inside the house to fit bangles and give blessings to the family.&nbsp; Malangwa itself derives its name from Malang Baba, revered by both Hindus and Muslims. The frontier town is therefore a symbol of the age-old solidarity between the two communities. Its message: do not spread division and strife.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/secularism-and-sectarianism/">Secularism and sectarianism</a>, Indra Adhikari  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230929050940_e60a2fe1d15bd66a7181c733b2d10c42ad8a420a6e27a04301bfaac1418f6e1a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230929050940_e60a2fe1d15bd66a7181c733b2d10c42ad8a420a6e27a04301bfaac1418f6e1a" data-rendition-name="original" width="3000" height="2000" loading="lazy" alt="Page 1"> <figcaption>A rally in Bhaktapur on 24 September was attended by a flag-waving crowd, but in contrast, was for restoring Nepal's Hindu monarchy. Ex-king Gyanendra attended the event. Photo: SULAV SHRESTHA/DESH SANCHAR </figcaption> </figure>  I have just returned from Malangwa which is limping back to normal. But the clashes have opened new fears that the attempt to ignite religious tension could spread to other border districts.&nbsp; We know from other sectarian conflagrations that the initial spark is from rubbing religion and politics together to create friction. This is a volatile mixture, and can be fanned by exclusionary populism -- especially in the age of social media. Sadly, no religion has a monopoly on extremism, even ones that preach compassion. &nbsp; The strategy of religious zealots is to propel themselves to power by neutralising symbols of tolerance, and discredit those who stand for togetherness. The tactic is to weaponise social networking sites to drive a wedge, and divide society into ‘us’ and ‘them’.&nbsp; Economic problems, joblessness and disillusionment with politicians is prompting new forces to stoke religious animosity.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/india-s-hindutva-politics-influencing-nepal">India’s Hindutva politics influencing Nepal</a>, Santa Gaha Magar The wind is blowing from the south this monsoon, and it is infusing ideas of majoritarian communalism. Let those who are fanning these flames be warned that they may well reap the whirlwind.&nbsp; The press should be playing a moderating check-and-balance role, but local media is itself spreading hate speech and extremism. In every crisis, there will be some brave souls who will act on their conscience. But we did not hear those voices amidst the extremist din in Malangwa.&nbsp; An ideological vacuum is turning Madhes Province into fertile ground for the religious right, and a laboratory against federalism and secularism. Nepal with its diversity cannot be a theocracy-- the state has to be a protector of all peoples and faiths. Secularism means the freedom of each Nepali to practice their religion.&nbsp; Such acceptance is anathema to those who want to mix religion and politics: they want us to distrust and hate each other. There is a lot of flag-waving going on, but at least the rally in Birganj showed that crimson is the new saffron and green. &nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/faith-in-tolerance"> Faith in tolerance</a>, Editorial Chandra Kishore is a Birganj-based journalist who writes this monthly column Borderlines in Nepali Times. @kishore_chandra

Chandra Kishore

Crimson, saffron and green

As the most populous country in the world, India’s democracy is tangled up in politics, religion, and the economy ahead of next year’s elections.&nbsp; India’s mainstream media has equated Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with prosperity, and a majority of the public in north India seems to buy that line. Indeed, India’s GDP has grown by 6.3% over the past nine years since Modi took office, its annual economic growth rate is the envy of the world. But the Modi government is also accused of strategically promoting crony capitalism, systematically tolerating attacks on minorities, and controlling the mass media. All this is already beginning to have a profound impact on Nepal’s own polity, with parties espousing Modi-style Hindutva becoming more vocal, their call for restoring the Hindu state sitting uneasily with the demands to also bring back the monarchy.&nbsp; This trip by a Nepali journalist across the stronghold of the Modi government ahead of the 2024 general election and coinciding with the Kanvar Yatra revealed both faith-driven politics as well as deep misgivings about India straying from its secular path. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/india-s-hindutva-politics-influencing-nepal">India’s Hindutva politics influencing Nepal</a>, Santa Gaha Magar The Himalayan state of Uttarakhand was busy with the annual Bol Bom pilgrimage with hundreds of thousands of pilgrims walking to the source of the Ganga to collect its holy water for their own local Shiva shrines. Along a stretch of highway, devotees wore t-shirts emblazoned with the symbol Om as they ordered meals at a dhawa eatery. Their motorcycles were festooned in saffron flags with images of Hanuman. Unsurprisingly, they were vocal in their support for the Hindu nationalist BJP, their religious devotion having translated into political preference to strongly identify with Hindutva. “India should be a Hindu country and protect its religion and culture. After all, there are one too many Christian and Muslim nations in the world,” said one young pilgrim. At a tea shop in Rishikesh, devotees praised Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for their commitment to promoting Hindutva.&nbsp; “India has become a better place with Modi cracking down on crime and corruption,” affirmed one devotee in saffron attire. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/red-to-saffron">RED to SAFFRON</a>, Shristi Karki  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230809110836_091ee141dcb1c1f3655680b9b81b9bede9ffb1844d56aa33bbdb91c3bf17b0d6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20230809110836_091ee141dcb1c1f3655680b9b81b9bede9ffb1844d56aa33bbdb91c3bf17b0d6" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="India’s faith in politics NT"> </figure>  A group at a table lectured a visiting Nepali about how India needed a strongman with the “correct” ideology that asserted India’s greatness on the world stage. They credited Modi for giving India international recognition and respect it did not have before. The highways to Rishikesh were ablaze in saffron banners and posters of Modi and Yogi Adityanath on walls of highway bridges and the backs of buses. The roads were packed with convoys of trucks with loudspeakers belting out devotional music to which the pilgrims danced. In between, there were also songs exhorting people to vote for the BJP in next year’s elections. The BJP has tried to brand itself as the protector of Hinduism, facilitating, amplifying and even radicalising their beliefs. Bol Bom pilgrims looked visibly uncomfortable when asked about the attacks on Muslims across Northern India. Most dismissed the question entirely, with some suspicious about that line of questioning. We also tried to gauge the political pulse of the general public away from the religious processions. What did India’s Dalits and Muslims think of Modi and his saffronification of politics? &nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/nepal-pm-to-india-to-reboot-ties">Nepal PM to India to reboot ties</a>, Chandra Kishore Even Indians who do not identify with Hindutva politics are Modi fans because they credit his two terms since 2014 as being the reason for India’s rapid economic growth. A businessman from Gurgaon who runs an export business in India and Nepal praised Modi’s leadership for business expansion, providing better loan schemes for startups, and attracting foreign investment. Even so, while Cyber City Gurgaon or Noida on the outskirts of New Delhi offer glimpses of prosperity, the rural reality for much of the population is a different story. “I feel cheated, Modi did not deliver on his promises,” said a bookstore owner in Delhi, explaining that an increase in GDP didn't necessarily translate into higher living standards for many. Along the pavement near Delhi’s railway station are rows and rows of homeless. Unemployment is still high, and young men injected themselves with drugs in the shadows of underpasses of the capital and ghettos near Jame Masjid. The world’s largest democracy may have elected this prime minister, but his party has used populism, fear-mongering and censorship to consolidate its support. But no one dares to speak out for fear of retribution. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-end-of-ideology-in-nepal">The end of ideology in Nepal</a> “If you point a finger against Modi, they will raid your home,” said the bookstore owner in a hushed tone. He voted for Modi’s BJP in 2014 and 2019, but says he is unlikely to do so in 2024 because he does not want to live in this state of fear. Media critics like journalist Ravish Kumar face constant harassment and death threats from government supporters. Adani Group buying out NDTV is viewed as a further move against the last remaining democratic voices. “No media channel is critical of the government,” said another interlocutor. It is an indication of the pervasive paranoia that none of the critics of the BJP wanted their name used. “The media is used for hate speech against minorities, to distract attention from the real problems, and to glorify India’s Hindu past and its future.”&nbsp; One has to turn to social media to find out the truth about lynchings, bulldozing of Muslim neighbourhoods or attacks on holy sites. The mainstream media either does not mention those attacks, or provides a distorted account. It is easy to be impressed with India’s impressive investment in infrastructure, the gleaming towers in its cities and the traffic jams on its roads. India might have taken a step forward in economic growth, but its democracy has taken two steps back. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/borderlines/religiously-following-politics">Religiously following politics</a>, Chandra Kishore

India’s faith in politics

Nepali Times: How did this transition from banking to politics happen so suddenly? Anil Shah: I worked in the banking sector for 31 years, 17 of them as a CEO. The primary reason I left is because I have always been vocal about young people needing a chance at leadership. And it did not seem fair to keep expressing that opinion while I held on to my own position. I then wanted to move on to something new, and set up Lead Nepal Inc, the objective of which was to craft leaders. For a year, I shared my three-decade leadership, management, motivation and team-building experience with political parties, law enforcement and military, private organisations as well as students. Around that time, my daughter graduated in New York and we planned to go to Boston to visit friends. We were crammed in an Uber in New York on the way to the train station and during the ride, the driver looked at the rear view mirror and asked if I was Anil Shah. He turned out to be Nepali who eventually asked why someone like me had not entered politics. I replied that I was not interested. He was emphatic that people like me needed to bein government.&nbsp; I told him that politics was not for me, but he made me a promise — if I were to get into politics, he would donate $1,000 to me and he had 100 other friends who were willing to donate the same amount. The gentleman’s name is Mangal Shrestha, and I thanked him when we got off at the train station. I thought his heart was in the right place, but I did not take him seriously. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/arnico-panday-the-political-scientist">Arnico Panday, the political scientist</a> The day after I joined the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) I got a message on Facebook (from Mangal Shrestha) asking where he could send the money he had promised me. At that moment, his hope, and the hopes and aspirations of Nepalis like him, touched me deeply. In Boston, I met Nepali students at Harvard, MIT, and Tufts. One of the students said they were tired of me complaining for 15 years about how our politics was a dirty pond that no one was willing to clean up. I needed to either stop talking about it or wade into the dirty pond myself and try to clean it up, he said. Should you decide to get into politics, we are with you. It was a culmination of various conversations like this that touched me and made me question why I could not take this step. Then came the question of where to go. And I think RSP was a good fit for me, because they are new to politics just like I was, and their vision and thought process sort of matched with mine. I thought if I was going to make a jump into this pond, these are the people I want to do it with. I was reminded by Mangal Shrestha him of the Nepali spirit of honesty and integrity. He could have forgotten about his promise, but he reached out to me. This told me two things: the first was the hope that not only I, but the RSP as a whole had given people like him. The interaction also showed me was the state of despondency people feel about what is happening to our country, the hopelessness that a Nepali Uber driver in Manhattan feels about returning. I think it reflected the thoughts of a lot of the youth regarding the visions of the RSP and its aspirations towards the people.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2023080608080_02e108f695e02a5472ba5cf2a3ac19ad9b0a15c504b31021e9d3fdc0d3694e7b.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2023080608080_02e108f695e02a5472ba5cf2a3ac19ad9b0a15c504b31021e9d3fdc0d3694e7b" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1456" loading="lazy" alt="Anil Shah RSP"> <figcaption>Photo: GOPEN RAI</figcaption> </figure>  Did you have to think a lot about whether it would be the RSP or maybe RPP or Bibeksheel? Definitely. Coming back and joining the RSP was not my first thought. My knee-jerk reaction would have been to join the Nepali Congress because my family has historically been closer to NC. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/Nepali-Times-Buzz/the-rana-reign-a-recap-of-history,3751">Subarna Shamsher Rana</a> is my wife’s grandfather. But it was not a question of joining a party for a position, or to use family legacy. I wanted to join politics to try and actually do something. The RSP has made you the head of its training department. Do politicians need training? Politicians do think that they should be the ones giving training, not getting it. That is why our country is where it is right now. However, our party does not have politicians, it has ordinary citizens like myself who want to do something for the nation. And the best thing is that a lot of RSP members— parliamentarians and Central Working Committee members alike— reached out to me to say that they were willing and glad to be trained because they wanted to learn to become better leaders. That kind of positive attitude is a start. A few days ago our party chair Rabi Lamichhane, parliamentarians, CWC members and other leadership sat down and discussed our training visions for leadership. We looked at our strengths and weaknesses and how we can individually contribute to the party. All of this makes me believe that I am in the right place. What kind of training do leaders need? Training is not one-size-fits-all. For the parliamentary party and the Central Committee, it is a training of synergy, team building, teamwork, and confidence building, all so that we can work together as a cohesive unit. At the end of the day, even though we are a political party, we are a startup. So when we go to the provinces, the training focuses on introducing the party and our Constitution, our vision, our culture. When we go to people who want to stand for elections, at any of the three levels, we explain what leadership is, and what one is expected to do when the party is in leadership, what our role will be when we are the opposition. We train people about how to express criticism that actually adds value and moves elected leaders in the right direction. Meanwhile, we have our ‘Mission Chaurasi’, because we are clear that we are going to run the country after the next elections in 2084 (2028). This is because we cannot be trying to figure out what to do and how to lead once we are already elected and waste another two years in the process. That is why we are taking these years to prepare. The question we always ask ourselves is not what to do or how to do it, it is why we are here. We are not like other cadre-based political parties, and we cannot forget why we exist. We are still figuring that out. I tell people that I have not joined politics, I have joined people-tics. Nepali politics has been plagued by leg-pulling, an unwillingness to compromise, and infighting. Can they be trained to change that? You cannot teach old dogs new tricks. But the RSP is still a puppy, so what our entire team learns now is going to be really crucial and we want to learn the right values and skills. This is a country of countless leaders, but the RSP wants to create value-based leadership from the roots at all three levels of government, which entails humble, value-based leadership. I start off by saying that if service is beneath you, leadership is beyond you. In Nepal, I find once you become a leader, service becomes something that is seen as shameful. But leadership is about service. It is not about being in charge, it is about being responsible for the people in our charge.&nbsp; What is the difference between training bankers and politicians? The core of political leadership is about the people you surround yourself with. And what I like about our chair Rabi Lamichhane is that he welcomed people like myself, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-needs-to-rebrand-itself">Dr Swarnim Wagle</a>, Shishir Khanal, Manish Jha and Dr Toshima Karki. If he had just wanted to rule, he would never bring people like us into the party, he would always have people who look up to him and surround himself with yes men. I have been in corporate meetings, and meetings of other political parties, and there is always free dialogue and conversation within the RSP. Our weakness is perhaps a lack of structure but there is no lack of open dialogue and discussion. You said you were inspired by the diaspora, but there are more Nepalis leaving, many of them for good. What do you say to them? I used to always think and tell <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepali-family-spread-across-kuwait-cyprus-uae">people who went overseas</a> to come back, make a life in Nepal, and do something for the country. When I once said this to a labour migrant, he replied that while I had come from a well-to-do family, he did not have the same privilege of coming back home to stay off work and spend time with family without there being consequences. I realised that to many people, spending time with their mother might mean letting her go hungry. That is when I decided that I was not going to tell the youth to come back because not everybody has what I have. What I am going to tell them is not to forget Nepal. The country has what it has and the economy is sustained because of money sent by the people who pour their sweat in foreign lands. Nepal is not just its land and its rivers, it is also its people, wherever they are.&nbsp; Read also:&nbsp; <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/migration-not-a-wish-but-necessity-for-nepalis">Migration not a wish, but necessity for Nepalis</a>, Shristi Karki <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/making-overseas-migration-better">Making overseas migration better</a>, Kunda Dixit Are you going to stand in elections yourself, maybe from Bhirkot where your ancestors are from?&nbsp; Anil Shah: One should never say no when it comes to politics, because you never know. If the party needs me and tells me I must stand, why not? I will not back down and say no. But if I were to say right now I'm going to stand from Kathmandu or Bhirkot or Janakpur, then I would have to devote half of my time to developing my constituency. If I were to focus on that while also building the leadership within the RSP— which has been my dream— I will fail in both of those undertakings. Right now I am clear within the party that my job is not to win elections and be given a post, my job is to ensure results in all three levels of government in the next election.&nbsp; Should I go to Bhirkot, I am confident that I can develop it. But developing Bhirkot will not develop Nepal. I have embarked on a journey where I want to build the kind of leadership to develop all of Nepal. The interactions and energy from Kosi and Lumbini have been phenomenal so far. Additionally, there is sometimes a misconception that the RSP is a party of and for young people. That is not the case at all— we are a party of Nepalis where people of all ages, ethnicities, genders, and religions are welcome. The central leader in the RSP from Bhirkot is from the Muslim community and from my ward. There is already a leader there.&nbsp; A lot of Nepal’s ageing leadership is overly ambitious, egotistic and do not want to let go. Do you address that in your training? Absolutely. I call that god syndrome. This belief that rules do not apply to us because we are in politics. But whether it is traffic rules, or having to be in a queue, we impress upon the RSP leadership during training that we must follow them. &nbsp; Do you think Rabi Lamichhane has god syndrome? Everybody has an ego, including me. The question is if <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/after-balen-the-rabi-phenomenon">Rabi Lamichhane</a> can control it, and from my experience he can. Rabi Lamichhane is a brand now. He is looked at as the face of the RSP, as the tip of the spear of a lot of people’s aspirations. People could argue and comment on all of his speeches and public appearances, but he has to do that as the leader of a national party. There is a difference between being invisible and being humble. And whether it is in parliament or on the streets, he is humble but never invisible. He is a humble man—a god-fearing man—and he is someone I think I can follow as a leader. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/rabi-lamichhane-is-home-less">Rabi Lamichanne is Home-less</a>, Shristi Karki

"We are a political startup"

In addition to the many commodities India exports to Nepal, it is now also sending across its brand of Hindutva politics.&nbsp;
Journalists at an interaction in Kathmandu on Wednesday expressed reservations about how the nationalistic Hindutva ideology of India’s ruling BJP was influencing Nepali politics as well.&nbsp;
The 'Hindutva politics and Indian-Nepali Media’ interaction was organised by Free Press Nepal with its editor JB Pun Magar moderating a panel that included Deshsanchar editor Yubaraj Ghimire and journalist-author Kanak Mani Dixit.
The speakers said Hindutva had historically disrupted communal harmony and encouraged religious and political extremism in secular India, saying that its proliferation across the open border into Nepal was “alarming”.&nbsp;
Ghimire explained that the Hindutva ideology applied the Hindu faith in politics and rejected the concept of secularism. Hindutva became part of Indian socio-politics with the establishment of the Hindu nationalist Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1925.&nbsp;
In 1951, the RSS established the Bharatiya Jana Sangh as its political wing to expand its right-wing, Hindu nationalist ideology to mainstream politics. The Jana Sangh broke off and merged with other parties, and an iteration became the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 1980, having carried over much of the original rank and file into the new political collective.&nbsp;
The BJP established itself as an influential political party after the destruction of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya by leaders of the RSS and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad in 1992. The party cemented itself as a mainstay in mainstream politics after Narendra Modi, a former full-time member of the RSS, became Prime Minister of India in 2014, and his re-election in 2019.
Meanwhile, in Nepal, parties like the royalist-right Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) have long called for the abolishment of secularism and the re-establishment of Nepal as a Hindu state.&nbsp;
The RPP was considerably weakened after Kamal Thapa split and established his own RPP-N which was not for a restoration of the monarchy but backed the demand for a Hindu state.
The party itself has gone through periods of the Nepali public taking its ideology with various degrees of seriousness. Nepal’s public sphere, disillusioned with secular-republican politicians, has seen a shift to pro-Hindu and sometimes monarchist public discourse corresponding with Hindutva in India. And Nepal’s political leadership and aspirants have taken notice.
Political experts and analysts have said that Nepal’s Communist Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal himself is trying to endear himself to India’s leadership by visiting Hindu temples in India and Nepal, while India is using Nepal’s political leadership to control national affairs.&nbsp;
Dixit, founding editor of Himal Southasian, said Hindutva politics was giving continuity to long-running interference of the Indian establishment in Nepal’s affairs.&nbsp;
“To understand Nepal’s Hindutva politics, we must go back and study India’s interventions in Nepal since 1951,” said Dixit, noting that Delhi’s involvement can be seen ever since the fall of the Rana regime.
“At present, the effects of Hindutva intervention can be seen in our water resources and aviation sectors,” he added.&nbsp;
Dixit described the increasing effect of Hindutva in Nepali politics as a “clear and present danger”.
He added, “Indian intervention is the elephant in the room that we refuse to address instead we focus on other mice in the corner.”&nbsp;
Ghimire also delved into how India’s governing party has had an impact on Nepal’s rulers by questioning the visits to the offices of the BJP by Prime Minister Dahal and his predecessor Sher Bahadur Deuba during their official visits to India.
"Why was there a need to call on a specific party’s office during a state visit?” asked Ghimire rhetorically.
Dixit said Nepal’s media had yet to report on how Foreign Minister NP Saud’s wife is the vice-president of the Nepal chapter of the Hindu advocacy group World Hindu Federation. He said such gaps in coverage showed that the media is itself being influenced by the Hindutva ideology.&nbsp;
“The RSS does not interfere in Nepal’s affairs in a way that is visible, but I know that Nepal’s political leadership has welcomed its representative in Nepal without exception and with open arms,” said Ghimire in an answer to a question from the floor.&nbsp;
Former Kantipur editor Sudheer Sharma also had a question to the panel on the objectives of the RSS in Nepal. Ghimire answered that the organisation wants to spread its worldview and ideology to countries outside India.&nbsp;
“In Nepal, the organisation wants people to learn not about Prithivi Narayan Shah, but about Shivaji Maharaj,” Ghimire said, referring to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj ,a 17th-century Indian sovereign idolised and celebrated by the RSS as a ruler who defended his Hindu empire from invasion.&nbsp;
Disillusionment with Nepal’s three mainstream parties manifested in the rise of the independent RSP, while the RPP is trying to ride the Hindutva wave to back Nepal reverting to being a Hindu state.&nbsp;
Even leaders thought to be progressive like former BBC Nepali Service journalist Rabindra Mishra have called for a referendum on secularism, leaving his Bibeksheel Sahja Party to join the RPP.
Ghimire concluded, “We must learn from India’s secularism. If we do not want what is happening in India’s socio-politics to impact Nepal, we must carefully study their weaknesses and where they have gone wrong so that we might avoid the same mistakes here.”

India’s Hindutva politics influencing Nepal

Padam Limbu promised his mother Dhanmaya that he would build the family a new, sturdier house to replace the one-storey cement and bamboo structure they lived in. Nine days later, her son was dead. Dhanmaya would learn that her son had been declared a ‘<a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11798">martyr</a>’, but she did not know a martyr for what.&nbsp; Padam, 43, was affiliated with the Sanghiya Rastriya Loktantrik Sangh which was agitating against Province 1 being named Kosi Province on 1 March. The front wanted the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16766">name to reflect the indigenous inhabitants</a> of eastern Nepal, the Kirat Limbuwan people.&nbsp; Padam was injured in the head as police clashed against protesters in Biratnagar on 19 March, and died in hospital five days later. He leaves behind his mother Dhanmaya, &nbsp;70 , two younger sisters, and an 18-year-old son.&nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/state-of-the-state"> State of the state</a>, Ramesh Kumar  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230714050744_65a7786566c9b2335dd8e24194df7d6f855464d60d143ad18156d0df09651fd6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20230714050744_65a7786566c9b2335dd8e24194df7d6f855464d60d143ad18156d0df09651fd6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1568" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Page 1 NT 2"> </figure>  <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/naming-new-provinces">How Nepal’s federal provinces should be demarcated</a> and what they should be named has been a contentious issue ever since the first post-conflict Constituent Assembly (CA) was deadlocked on the matter, and new elections had to be held in 2013. The Maoist party was <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16674">pushing for a 14-province model</a> named after Nepal’s various ethnicities. The NC pushed for a territorial model, while the UML wanted a hybrid system with 15 provinces. A compromise on seven provinces was finally reached, but naming them was so contentious they were numbered from 1 to 7. <div class="embed-block"><div><div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"><iframe src="//cdn.iframe.ly/api/iframe?url=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FryXevsel-3U&key=87ca3314a9fa775b5c3a7726100694b0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer *; clipboard-write *; encrypted-media *; gyroscope *; picture-in-picture *; web-share *;"></iframe></div></div></div> It was only after the first federal elections in 2017 that the provinces got names. Three of them were based on rivers, like Gandaki, Karnali, Bagmati, or geographical like Lumbini or Sudurpaschim. Only the Madhes Province got an identity-based name. Province 1 did not have a name till earlier this year, because of opposing demands. Most of the dominant caste groups wanted to call it Kosi after the river, while <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/eastern-nepal-s-mundum-landscape">indigenous communities</a> wanted their Kirat Limbuwan identity recognised.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-kosi-s-sorrow-and-scope">The Kosi’s sorrow, and scope</a>, Kanak Mani Dixit  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230714050744_0493cf1754a398a4fd937495fef82451aab3c7b0ef9192eb2ce110acddfc3c8f.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20230714050744_0493cf1754a398a4fd937495fef82451aab3c7b0ef9192eb2ce110acddfc3c8f" data-rendition-name="original" width="1448" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="Page 1 NT 3"> </figure>  <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/eastern-nepal-s-depopulating-mountains">Hikmat Karki</a> of the opposition UML was chief minister when the assembly voted on the Kosi name. But he was ousted in a confidence vote earlier this month, and replaced with Uddhav Thapa of the NC, although his election has been challenged in the Supreme Court because the assembly speaker in an unconstitutional move also voted to break a tie. &nbsp; Thapa has since said Kosi name cannot be changed, but Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal told Maoist supporters here it was a “mistake” for his party to support Kosi. The issue has pitted two members of the coalition government. “The prime minister has poured oil on the fire by saying that the Kosi name was a mistake, it has polarised the situation,” former chief minister Karki said. <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14481">Kumar Lingden</a> of the Sanghiya Rastriya Loktantrik Sangh said: “Kosi was named in a guerrilla style. If the Madhes Province can be named after communities residing there, why can't we?”&nbsp; Read also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=15669#.Y4PPBi9w2Lc">Federalism isn't a zero sum game</a>, Pari Thapa  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230714050744_c8717facb561ae2403d760b3a6a96424c4b47cb27b9c72ac595aa2e45ffb9493.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="20230714050744_c8717facb561ae2403d760b3a6a96424c4b47cb27b9c72ac595aa2e45ffb9493" data-rendition-name="original" width="800" height="369" loading="lazy" alt="Page 1 NT 4"> </figure>  The main concern even among moderate politicians here is that renaming Kosi as Kirat Province may open up a can of worms and take the country back to the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16672">dangerous ethnic polarisation</a> of 2011-12 in eastern Nepal. Violent unrest could also spread as other provinces also demand name changes. Lingden assures other ethnicities in the province have no problems with a Kirat Limbuwan Province. But not everyone agrees, and the protests have spread beyond Biratnagar with rallies also in Kathmandu. Ashok Kumar Sardar of Morang’s Katahari Rural Municipality was taking his mother-in-law to hospital last month when police fired teargas at protesters. Sardar was hit by a shell. “This is the Tarai, and people from the Madhes, like us, also live here,” says Sardar. "We could also demand that this be a part of Madhes Province.” &nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/feudal-federalism"> Feudal federalism</a>, Editorial  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20230714050744_e03739b1c5ca6d92717982542d9213f38932b550b596a85d2a95b3cd0c30f1ed.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="20230714050744_e03739b1c5ca6d92717982542d9213f38932b550b596a85d2a95b3cd0c30f1ed" data-rendition-name="original" width="3269" height="2006" loading="lazy" alt="Page 1 NT 5"> </figure>  Kunta Rai is firm in her belief that eastern Nepal is the original homeland of its <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/do-nepali-attitudes-need-to-be-decolonised">indigenous people</a>, and the province name should reflect that identity. “Only those who do not understand our history oppose our demand,” she said. "Naming the province Kosi will erase our civilisation, history, and identity. That is not ok.”&nbsp; Mixing <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/news/new-chapter-in-nepal-political-saga">federal coalition politics</a> with ethnic identity has made the situation volatile here. Political scientist Krishna Pokhrel notes that in a democracy the government must also listen to demands of indigenous groups. &nbsp; He adds: “But it is now also important for protesting groups to also reassure other communities that their rights will be protected.”&nbsp; All this means little for Dhanmaya Limbu, who looks out from her dark room, overwhelmed with grief, uncertainty, and empty slogans. "People try to reassure me saying my son was a hero, that he died fighting the good fight,” says Dhanmaya, her eyes brimming. “Certificates won’t bring my son back.” Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-karnali-s-hunger-emergency">The Karnali’s hunger emergency</a>, Anita Bhetwal

politics