Better Late than Never!

(Courtesy: el Guapo)

The last month and a half in Nepali politics has witnessed a silent revolution of sorts. No, it’s not the Maoists’ who are at the helm of this quiet revolution. Rather, it is the Nepali Congress that has finally begun playing the role of a credible opposition party by checking Maoist aggression on issues related to the Nepali Army, religion and land ownership.

On the Nepali Army

Through Koirala’s Machiavellian style of leadership, the Nepali Congress has begun to simultaneously chip away at each of the Maoists’ Achilles’ heels. First, the pivotal role that the Nepali Congress played on the issue of recruitment for the Nepali Army was commendable.

The NC’s rise to the defense of a national institution that has demonstrated its professionalism and commitment to democracy time and again, has placed the Nepali Congress is a completely different limelight. The outpouring of support on the Army’s position on recruitment sounded more like the type of rhetoric that would come from a national government than from an opposition party.

Although the sudden burst in support for the Nepali Army most certainly had its own brand of political motivation, the NC’s demand to maintain the political independence of the Nepali State’s tier-one security asset was well-timed and immaculately executed.

The message that the NC delivered was flawless - that the Nepali Army should not be dragged into political controversy, should be permitted to fill its vacant spots and that the pursuit of both of these tasks is in the national interest and not in contravention (in either letter or spirit) of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement.

By adopting this line, the Nepali Congress demonstrated its capacity to learn from past mistakes, its ability to adapt to Nepal’s changed political context and more importantly, its ability to contain Maoist ambitions in a very logical and disarming manner.

By insisting that the Nepali Army be permitted to carry on with filling its vacant positions, the Nepali Congress also managed to weaken another pillar of unyielding Maoist support - Mr. Ian Martin, who at the time of this writing, is rumored to be in the process of being “diplomatically” replaced.

On Religion

The controversy over whether Indian or Nepali priests should conduct ritual prayers at the most significant Hindu temple in the world (Pashupatinath) was dumb luck for the Nepali Congress and truly a dumb calculation on the part of the Maoists’.

By forcibly intruding on a matter of religious significance, the Maoists’ literally shot themselves in the foot. A blatant violation of the tenet of maintaining separation between religion and the state occurred and the Nepali Congress was at the right place at the right time to capitalize on this Maoist blunder.

As the saying goes, one must make hay while the sun shines and this was exactly what the Nepali Congress did. As soon as the news of YCL (Maoist) cadre physically assaulting Hindu priests hit the airwaves, the Nepali Congress was at the forefront demanding a reversal of the Maoist government’s decree to discontinue the tradition of Indian priests performing religions rites at Pashupatinath.

The NC’s stance immediately curried Indian favor, especially from within the ranks of India’s powerful Hindu-aligned BJP party, and also from Nepal’s religious Right. The memory of Nepal’s top Hindu activist having been murdered by the Maoists’ emerged to the top of the rhetorical agenda and on a second issue in succession, the Maoists’ were forced to concede their original position.

Once again, most peculiarly, the Nepali Congress demonstrated the qualities of a ruling party while playing the role of an opposition force. If only some semblance of such high thinking had characterized some of their rhetoric when the NC was actually in power (at any point in the post-1990 period), it would be the NC and not the Maoists’ who would be riding at Nepal’s helm today.

On Property Rights

Although the issue of land reformation is a complicated one, the NC’s insistence that the Maoists’ return stolen property to their rightful owners, is brilliant. The logic forwarded (and rightly so) by the Nepali Congress is that the return of property is a priority that the Maoists’ agreed to on paper, as part of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and multiple successive agreements thereafter. The Maoists’ have failed to deliver.

So when the Maoists’ complain that the NC is not allowing the peace process to reach its logical conclusion by stone walling the Maoist combatant issue, the NC’s response is that while important, the Maoist combatant issue isn’t the only item on the peace agenda. To this, neither the Maoists’ nor Ian Martin, nor any foreign government sympathetic to the Maoist cause has a logical response and the NC knows this.

The manner in which the NC has framed this debate is that legal procedures and not forced acquisition should guide the process of land reform. Many of the landowners who have been disenfranchised by the Maoists, belong to the ranks of the Nepali Congress. But political activists have rights too and there is no constitutional exception when it comes to the State’s responsibility to protect the rights of its citizens. It is unfortunate for the Maoists that in this particular case, it is they who are the perpetrators of the crime and soon to be the prosecutors of the “criminals” as well.

Conclusion

The Maoists’ had initially gauged Girija Koirala’s lust for power aptly. By luring Koirala with the dream of becoming Nepal’s first President, the Maoists’ gained one concession after another from the SPA (Seven Party Alliance). They used Krishna Prasad Sitoula and Shekhar Koirala to forward the Maoist agenda and in doing so, managed to keep the international community at bay. The Maoists’ used the UNMIN (UN Mission in Nepal) to consolidate their credibility, opted for elections once they were certain to deliver a stunning victory and finally ascended the apex of Nepal’s power pyramid.

Now the dream is over and it is increasingly apparent that all of the Maoists’ tactical calculations have been on target with the exception of one. The Maoists’ appear to have grossly underestimated Koirala’s single, yet prescient talent - his tired and true subject matter expertise in bringing down governments and political opponents, with finesse and unassuming candor.

Girija Prasad Koirala may fail every test known to man in good governance; he may be clueless in the art of management; he is certainly a stranger to the idea of succession planning and intra-party democracy. But when it comes to undermining and humiliating his political opponents, Girija Koirala is a one man army; a global authority whose services would benefit any effort at toppling governments and breaking up coalitions, anywhere in the world.

It is under Girija Prasad Koirala’s leadership that the Nepali Congress is finally showing some mettle. And given all the totalitarian hints the Maoists keep dropping, the dismal state of lawlessness, and an economy of the verge of collapse, the time is coming once more for the Nepali people to choose between the lesser evil - Girija Koirala with his demonstrated deficiencies in constructive leadership or Pushpa Kamal Dahal with his demonstrated proficiencies in orchestrating cold-blooded mass murder.