DEATH CALL FROM INDIAN EMBASSY IN KATHMANDU ANGERS NEPALESE EVERYWHERE

[From  here the other halfway down the globe, assuming that the news report bears validity in all respects and considering  on the backdrops of two high profile murders of Jamim Shah, a Muslim media baron on February 7, 2010 and Mirza Dil Shad Beg, another Muslim man, a seating member of then parliament,  on June 27, 1998  in the streets of Kathmandu and also in the aftermath of resignation of the prime minister on June 1, 2010 and not yielding any result so far from the fourth run-off election thereafter pushing the country down in limbo; a concerned Nepali citizen would virtually stay speculative towards Indian disposition in that it harbours colonial thought even overthrowing colonial rulers from its own soil some 63 years  ago and wants its northern neighbours go under the Nehruvian security umbrella. The murders have been reported as the result of underground mafia infighting. With this ‘death call’ from a responsible official at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu brings flashback of those two murders from a different angle.  Now what would be another possible answer to the question of those murders could be another question itself.]

By B. K. Rana

A vexing news report has hit the internet from Kathmandu today that a member of Constituent Assembly has received death threat over telephone from ‘a consular at the Indian Embassy (whose name has not been revealed yet)’ in Kathmandu for the formers alleged ‘lobbying with some Madhes-based lawmakers’ to vote for his party candidate in the 4th- prime-ministerial-run-off election that failed to fruit last Friday.

Adding further the report reads the official has ‘also warned him (the lawmaker) that his daughter, an 11th grader at Kendriya Vidhalaya run by the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, would be expelled from the school.’ In frustration obviously, Ram Kumar Sharma, the lawmaker has sent a letter to the assembly chairman asking for necessary security of his family and himself.  And the Maoists have also ‘on Saturday decided to summon Indian Ambassador to Nepal Rakesh Sood and other embassy officials for an official response on the alleged death threat issued by an Indian Embassy official’.

From  here the other halfway down the globe, assuming that the news report bears validity in all respects and considering  on the backdrops of two high profile murders of Jamim Shah, a Muslim media baron on February 7, 2010 and Mirza Dil Shad Beg, another Muslim man, a seating member of then parliament,  on June 27, 1998  in the streets of Kathmandu and also in the aftermath of resignation of the prime minister on June 1, 2010 and not yielding any result so far from the fourth run-off election thereafter pushing the country down in limbo; a concerned Nepali citizen would virtually stay speculative towards Indian disposition in that it harbours colonial thought even overthrowing colonial rulers from its own soil some 63 years  ago and wants its northern neighbours go under the Nehruvian security umbrella. The murders have been reported as the result of underground mafia infighting. With this ‘death call’ from a responsible official at the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu brings flashback of those two murders from a different angle again. Now what would be another possible answer to the question of those murders could be another question itself.

The understandable paradox here is that the Maoists received shelter in India, mostly around New Delhi South Block  to wage ‘their  peoples war (1996 -2006)’ against ‘the feudal government’ as the rebels termed and;  who subsequently overwhelmed the whole socio-political life of Nepal, knocked the ‘constitutional-monarchial parliamentary democracy’ down, dethroned the king from his over 240 years old ‘ancestral throne’ and installed a secular, federal republican system of government on the land. The Maoists began speaking publicly for the amendment of its treaties with India: mainly of the Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1950 and possibly the Sugauli Treaty of 1816 also. Nepal lost more than half of its present land after the signing of Sugauli Treaty.

What is widely perceived is that the Maoists are the 'strongest nationalist force' in the country and this fervour is deep rooted in the Nepalese people. Should the Maoists or other political parties not have this agenda, they won’t be on the scene. The Nepali Congress Party is viewed as liberal in the issues of nationalism and independence but this is the only known democratic party in the country. The Maoists successfully utilized their shelter in India to overhaul the system and now they are moving towards where India might not have expected before. The Maoist Chief’s recent call for amending bilateral treaties, which some other termed as futile exercise, may be viewed in this light also.  But as well known to all, India would not appreciate such move from any responsible party in Nepal.

Having offered a venue in New Delhi for signing a peace accord which is also known as the ‘Delhi Deal’ in between the Maoists and Seven Party Alliance [SPA] of Nepal on November 22,  2005 - the  Indian side  had apparently hoped  the country would achieve lasting peace and  step towards stability and prosperity. The warring Maoists’ seating for peace would eventually send a somber message to the Indian Maoists for reconciliation and adjustment.  While on the other hand the Nepalese Maoists were also expected to be ‘a help’ in resolving the ever raging Maoist insurgency in India’s different states such as: Andhra Pradesh, Chhatisgarh, Jharkhand, Bihar and West Bengal - the vicious by-product of India’s emergence as a global player. But nothing could be realized.

Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, Nepal

The Maoist Chief of Nepal, incarnated as ‘Prachand’ - ‘the fierce one’ had propounded his Prachandpath or the ‘Prachanda Way’ or ‘Prachandology’ as a recipe for the liberation of proletariats, possibly of the entire world. It was a 'namesake proposition' based on unique Nepalese experience  to boost up their young guerrillas in the war fronts. So it couldn't garner wider appeal. No hid is paid to it today. Now it exists nowhere – it seems. No one talks of the Prachanda Way in Nepal. This Maoist man – Prachand - had also called the Indian Maoists for laying arms down and embracing electoral system which the latter rejected by posting on their portal, 'Eeven more surprising is the assertion by the CPN(Maoist) that their current “tactics” in Nepal would be an example to other Maoist parties in South Asia. Comrade Prachanda had also given a call to other Maoist parties to reconsider their revolutionary strategies and to practice multiparty democracy in the name of 21st century democracy.Our CC makes it crystal-clear to CPN(M) and the people at large that there can be no genuine democracy in any country without the capture of state power by the proletariat and that the so-called multiparty democracy cannot bring any basic change in the lives of the people.' The Indian Maoists this way ignored the Prachanda call and this way died the 'Prachandology'.  Today the rural India suffers from Maoists insurgency as Nepal did until 2006.

The reported ‘death call’  over the phone by an officer from the Indian Embassy in Kathmandu, if is true,  implies that not only the general Indian public, but the responsible diplomats also carry in their head, an illusion that Nepal is 'not a sovereign country' and therefore should follow the way India shows forward. This is an example of  unclothed interference on a sovereign country's internal affairs, however, some party leaders, either following direction from New Delhi or opposing, are showing an ugly show to the world  from Kathmandu. This kind of denuded interference from a neighbour must come to an end.The Indian people seem to be disbelieving that Nepal has remained sovereign and  independent since the ages - even before the Buddha.

The ‘death threat’ discussed above instills no fear and subjection at all in truth but frankly anger, defiance and assertion among the concerned Nepalese citizens; whether which political party they would have voted in the election. Such attitude, reported in the media must be condemned hundred of times over and over again. We, the people of Nepal have always sincere desire for peaceful friendly relationship with our neighbouring countries and demand such employees be recalled or sent where they came from. 

Maoist Chairman Issues a Protest Letter in Vernacular Nepali:

विषयः विरोध पत्र।

महाशय,

हामी दुई छिमेकी मुलुकहरू नेपाल र भारतबीच लामो समयदेखि कुटनैतिक सम्बन्ध रही आएको छ र जनस्तरमा समेत घनिष्ट सम्बन्ध छ। हाम्रो पार्टी, नेपाल र नेपाली जनता हामी दुई देशहरूको बीचमा सुमधुर एवं असल मैत्री सम्बन्ध विकास होस् भन्ने चाहान्छ र त्यसदिशामा प्रयत्नरत छ। दुई सार्वभौम देशको बीचमा पारस्परिक सम्मान र समानताका आधारमा हुने सम्बन्ध एवं व्यवहारले नै दुई छिमेकीको बीचमा हामीले अपेक्षा गरे अनुसारको असल मैत्री सम्बन्धको विकास र सुदृढीकरण हुन सक्दछ। त्यसप्रकारको सम्बन्ध दुवै देशको हितमा हुनेछ। तर त्यसको विपरित नेपाल र नेपाली जनताले भारतद्वारा नेपालको राष्ट्रिय सार्वभौमिकता एवं स्वाधीनताका विरुद्ध उत्पीडन एवं हस्तक्षेपको अनुभूति गर्न परिरहेको दुःखद स्थिति विद्यमान छ। नेपाल अहिले राजतन्त्रको अन्त्य एवं गणतन्त्रको स्थापना जस्ता युगान्तकारी परिवर्तनहरूसहित ऐतिहासिक संक्रमणलीन अवस्थाबाट गुजि्ररहेको अवसरमा नेपाली जनता चाहन्छन्, नेपाल र भारतबीचको सम्बन्धमा रहेको यो दुःखद स्थितिलाई अन्त्य गरी हाम्रो सम्बन्धलाई गुणात्मक रूपमै नयाँ आयाम दिन सकियोस्। हामीले भारतबाट यस दिशामा नयाँ शीराबाट सकारात्मक ढंगले सोचिनेछ भन्ने अपेक्षा गरेका हौं। तर दुःखका साथ भन्नु परिरहेको छ, भारत जस्तो छिमेकी मुलुकबाट अहिले पनि हामीले नयाँ आधारमा नयाँ सम्बन्ध होइन, पुरानै उत्पीडन र हस्तक्षेपको कटु व्यवहारको निरन्तरता पाइरहेका छौं।

यस परिवेशमा हालै मात्र नेपाल स्थित भारतीय राजदुतावासका काउन्सिलर सुब्रत दासद्वारा हाम्रो पार्टीको केन्द्रीय समितिका सदस्य एवं संविधानसभाका सदस्य माननीय रामकुमार शर्माप्रति गरिएको अपमानपूर्ण, अभद्र एवं घम्कीपूर्ण अभिव्यक्तिजन्य व्यवहारप्रति हाम्रो पार्टीको गम्भीर ध्यानाकर्षण भएको छ। काउन्सिलर सुब्रत दासद्वारा रामकुमार शर्मालाई आफ्नो पार्टीको तर्फबाट प्रधानमन्त्रीका उम्मेद्वारलाई विजयी बनाउने उद्देश्यका साथ गर्नुभएको प्रचार अभियानप्रति आपत्ति प्रकट गर्दै त्यसलाई बन्द गर्न धम्की दिइएको, सभासद पदबाट हटाउने पत्र पठाइने जस्तो आफ्नो कार्यक्षेत्रसँग विल्कुल असम्बन्धित कुरा गरिएको र अपहरणसम्म गर्न सकिने चेतावनी दिइएको कुरा सार्वजनिक भइसकेको छ। त्यतिमात्र होइन भारतीय राजदतावासद्वारा सञ्चालित केन्दीय विद्यालयमा अध्ययनरत शर्माकी छोरीलाई विद्यालयबाट निस्काशन गरिने “निर्णय”समेत भइसकेको ँजानकारी’’ गराइयो। एउटा कुटनीतिक निकायको जिम्मवार व्यक्तिबाट भएको यो कार्य कुटनीतिक सीमा एवं मर्यादाको घोर उलंघन हो। यसबाट सार्वभौमसत्ता सम्पन्न नेपालको संविधानसभा, व्यवस्थापिका-संसदको अपमान, नेपालको राष्ट्रिय सार्वभौमिकतामाथि ठाडो चुनौति र नेपालको आन्तरिक राजनीतिक मामिलामा हस्तक्षेप गर्ने दुःसाहस भएको स्पष्ट हुन्छ। त्यसैकारणले व्यवस्थापिका-संसदको अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय तथा मानवअधिकार सम्बन्ध समितिले यस विषयलाई गम्भीरतापूर्वक लिई राजदुतावासको सम्बन्धित कर्मचारीलाई देश निकाला गर्न सरकारलाई निर्दैशन दिइसकेको तथ्य पनि सार्वजनिक भइसकेको छ।
महाशय, हाम्रो पार्टी एकीकृत ने.क.पा. -माओवादी) राजदुतावासका कर्मचारीबाट भएको यस कार्यको तीब्र निन्दा एवं भत्र्सना गर्दछ। र, कुटनीतिक निकायको सीमा एवं मर्यादालाई सम्पूर्ण रूपमा उलंघन गरी गरिएको यसप्रकारको कार्यप्रति सम्बन्धित निकायबाट क्षमा याचना गर्न तथा सम्बधित व्यक्तिलाई फिर्ता पठाउन माग गर्दै यो विरोध पत्र प्रस्तुत गर्दछ। हामी आशा एवं अपेक्षा गर्दछौं की भारत सरकारले यो विरोधपत्रलाई गम्भीरतापूर्वक लिनेछ र यस प्रकारका गल्तीहरू सच्याउँदै दुई देशको बीचमा असल मैत्री सम्बन्ध विकास गर्न नयाँ शीराबाट सकारात्मक ढंगले सोच्नेछ।
अन्त्यमा, हाम्रो लागि नेपालको राष्ट्रिय सार्वभोमिकता, भौगालिक अखण्डता र स्वाधीनताको रक्षा सर्वाेपरी रहेको छ। तर साथसाथै हाम्रो पार्टी नेपाल र भारतको बीचमा पारस्परिक सम्मान र समानतामा आधारित असल मैत्री सम्बन्ध विकास गर्न पनि प्रतिबद्ध छ।
पुष्पकमल दाहाल ‘प्रचण्ड’
०६७ भदौ १