<figure><img width="1492" height="996" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101136/636b74e29c7e80680e0623bajpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Ex-House Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara with jubilant supporters on Monday outside the Kathmandu District Court which acquitted him on charges of attempt of rape of a college in September. </figcaption></figure>Former Speaker of the Nepal Parliament Krishna Bahadur Mahara was acquitted by the Kathmandu District Court of case in which he was <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/mahara-arrested/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">accused of the attempted rape</a> of a colleague in October last year.Chief judge Ambar Raj Poudel ruled that there was not enough evidence to implicate <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/plot-thickens-in-nepal-speaker-rape-case/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mahara</a> in the case. Mahara had been in Dilli Bazar Jail during the investigation and court proceedings since 3 November 2019. The state prosecutor office had used evidence provided by Police and asked for a seven year sentence on the charge of attempted rape.However, even though the court had asked for a polygraph test and DNA report on Mahara the police had been unable to provide them after <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-rise-and-fall-of-comrade-mahara/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the former Speaker</a> refused to comply. Mahara had resigned from his post, and after the criminal case was filed he was automatically evicted from his parliamentary seat. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/the-rise-and-fall-of-comrade-mahara/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The rise and fall of Comrade Mahara</a>, Sewa Bhattarai and Sanghamitra SubbaThe victim had accused Mahara of arriving in her room on 29 September at 7pm with a bottle of alcohol when her husband was not there, and tried to rape her. She complained verbally to the police at 8:45pm that Mahara had tried to rape her and beat her. added that he had beaten her up when she resisted. <figure><img width="1500" height="1000" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101136/636b74e69c7e80680e0623bbjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Photo: RSS</figcaption></figure>Maharajganj police DSP Durga Raj Regmi arrived at the alleged victim’s room at 9:10, shot a video of the room, and asked the woman to accompany him for a medical exam. She refused, saying she would first wait for her husband to return.DSP Regmi returned to the alleged crime scene the next morning and retrieved a half-finished bottle of alcohol, a glass, and snacks. He also found a broken pair of glasses and the sole of a shoe. The evidence was all presented to the court.Read also: <a style="font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/mahara-arrested/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mahara arrested</a>After first calling the police, the woman in question refused to further cooperate with teh investigation and changed her statement several times. But there is evidence that she called the Nepali Congress MP Uma Regmi at 11pm to help her.The police report adds that Mahara’s bodyguard and driver said they had waited below the woman’s room while Mahara went up. Mahara himself denied ever going up, even though police presented a CCTV clip showing him leaving the room at 8:32:45pm that night. Mahara also refuted claims that he had a bottle of whiskey with him, and said he only drank red wine on doctor’s advice.  Police said that the grade on the spectacles retrieved from the room matched that of Mahara’s prescription.   Police presented an SMS message from Mahara to the woman which said: ‘Forget about yesterday. Forgive me.’ The medical report of the woman also detailed evidence of beatings. In a curious turn of events, the woman herself said she was “very happy” about the verdict and thanked the district court. In a phone interview with Himal Khabarpatrika on Monday, she said: “I am happy because Mahara Sir suffered an injustice, and so did I. I have been denying the incident since that day itself, but everyone including the media and police out pressure on me. Today we got justice.”She also accused the police of detaining her for nine hours and forcing her to file the complaint. She added: “It looks like our society talks about women’s rights, but perpetrated injustices against women.”Meanwhile, the deputy state prosecutor Num Raj Khanal said: “We think we have enough evidence against Mahara. WE are going to appeal this case.”Mahara has been released from jail, and can now assume his MP position the House, and avail himself of all his perks and salaries. However, if the higher court declares him guilty he could lose that post again.

original

674x448

610x380

500x500

400x266

400x240

400x203

301x200

1250x600

1084x550

Mahara acquitted

<img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141156/636a60539c7e80680e056e74jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"/>Wearing a plain white polo shirt and a hint of a smile, former House Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara walked out of Norvic Hospital on Tuesday surrounded by security guards and some supporters. He was whisked away to the district government attorney's office at Babarmahal.Mahara <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/mahara-arrested/">is accused of attempted rape</a> of a female colleague in Parliament, Roshani Shahi, on 29 September. When the news hit headlines, and the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) reacted with uncharacteristic decisiveness, advising Mahara to resign. For watchdogs who have been criticising the government for impunity, including in war crimes and last year's highly publicised case of <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/justice-delayed-and-denied/">Nirmala Panta,</a> this came as a complete surprise.Was the government finally buckling under national and international pressure to clean up its track record on impunity? Was Mahara the last straw? Could the party be reacting to sagging public support?Read Also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/mahara-arrested/">Mahara arrested,</a> Nepali TimesSenior politicians have been falling like nine pins. This week it was the turn of MP Mohammad Aftab Alam from Rautahat, accused of burning a dozen people alive in a brick kiln after they were injured while making explosives to be used in the first Constituent Assembly elections in 2012. With unprecedented swiftness, police on Tuesday arrested another MP, Pramod Sah from Sarlahi, after he was accused of vandalising an airline counter and roughing up airline staff in Janakpur. There is also an arrest warrant out for Parbat Gurung, MP from Dolakha accused of attempted murder.Initially, Mahara's response fit the pattern of powerful men who know they can get away with any crime. His press adviser said he had never gone to Shahi's apartment, but after CCTV footage emerged of him arriving on the street outside, Mahara agreed to cooperate with the investigation. When his health reportedly worsened in custody, he was taken to an expensive private hospital.Mahara’s first resignation letter was conditional: he said he was stepping down only for the duration of the investigation, hoping to get right back to his speaker job. In fact, that is still a possibility since he has not resigned as member of parliament.“An MP is suspended if accused of grave crimes, so Mahara is not receiving any government facilities or salary at the moment,” explains Rojnath Pande, spokesperson of the Parliament secretariat. "However, he is not dismissed from his position. If he is cleared, he can go back to his duties as an MP.”Read also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; outline: 0px; letter-spacing: 0.15px;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/plot-thickens-in-nepal-speaker-rape-case/">Plot thickens in Nepal Speaker rape case,</a> Nepali Times<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141156/636a60579c7e80680e056e75jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1500" height="1000"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>Meanwhile, the NCP after telling him to resign has kept mum. NCP Spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha told Nepali Times: “His resignation automatically includes resigning from the party. We had advised him to resign as MP as well, but since he is suspended at the moment the point is moot. We cannot say anything now about his eventual return to politics.”Shrestha claims Mahara’s resignation was meant to aid the investigation and not necessarily because of his guilt, and that he is innocent until proven guilty. However, top NCP leaders have been briefed by police that there is enough evidence against Mahara to make the rape claim credible. The party is therefore in damage-control mode.Even a year ago, the NCP might have tried to hush up the case, especially because the evidence is murky. Shahi has changed her statement many times, calling police to say she was raped, withdrawing the complaint, then filing a first information report (FIR) for attempted rape, and again accusing the police of pressurising her. There are screenshots of Shahi’s SMS conversation with a mysterious ‘M Sir’, which hint at long-standing intimacy.Journalists have dug up Facebook posts showing Shahi has known Mahara for decades, and implying that he has been abusing her, and that she may even have carried his child once. However, the account has now been deactivated.Shahi has been subjected to the same kind of backlash that #metoo accusers have faced: a section of the public thinks she had a consensual relationship with Mahara and outed him when he ceased to serve her purposes. Shahi has in fact accused Mahara of not helping her get a permanent posting at the Parliament Secretariat.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/theytoo/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">#theytoo</a>, Sewa Bhattarai<iframe src="https://cdn.knightlab.com/libs/timeline3/latest/embed/index.html?source=1zVrbpu-q8I59SQO7MmpbmqlL62CYypGhqq1xBjc76bo&amp;font=Default&amp;lang=en&amp;initial_zoom=2&amp;height=650" width="100%" height="650" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>The case has now become emblematic of the<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/four-fold-increase-in-reported-rape-in-10-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> trend of rape and sexual abuse in Nepal</a>, and globally — most perpetrators are known to victims, and even have close relationships. Use of force is rare but manipulation, including threats, bribes, shame and humiliation, are common. If Shahi faced threats and shame during a supposedly consensual relationship, it is difficult to see where the consent ends and abuse begins.Shahi herself has complicated her case by her on-off accusation, but more people in Nepal now seem aware that even if the relationship is consensual, violence or non-consensual intimacy makes it abusive. Many believe Shahi was intimidated into changing her statements. Yet for a government famous for impunity, the very fact that a powerful politician is being investigated is a step forward for gender justice.But there are also many losers. Mental health was made an easy scapegoat after Shahi blamed depression and medication for her inconsistent statements. The reputation of women leaders, including MPs, has taken a hit since most of them have remained conspicuously silent. Only Nepali Congress MP Uma Regmi, whom Shahi called at midnight, has spoken out.Read also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; letter-spacing: 0.15px;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/four-fold-increase-in-reported-rape-in-10-years/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Four-fold increase in reported rape in 10 years, </a>Sewa BhattaraiShahi’s marriage also suffered, since her husband Chitra Jung Shahi, who was out of town when the incident happened, reportedly went straight to Mahara when he returned and then chided his wife for smearing the politician, urging her to retract her accusation. Chitra Jung Shahi later posted a handwritten statement of separation on Facebook.While the case is tangled, it has certainly shaken Nepal’s powerful men, many of whom have, until now, behaved as if they are above the law. The pressure for justice in this case is increasing. On 3 October, 15 human rights organisations issued a joint statement, urging the government to treat Mahara as an ordinary citizen and investigate the case. The UN and embassies of five countries in Nepal issued another joint statement, urging Nepal to establish a ‘zero-tolerance message to combat gender-based violence’.The NCP appears to be trying to turn the Mahara case into proof that it abides by the rule of law, and deflect attention away from larger cases of impunity for war crimes.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/a-klepto-republic/">Klepto Republic</a>, Editorial

The rise and fall of Comrade Mahara

<figure><img width="1800" height="1200" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141152/636a5f6d9c7e80680e056e2bjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>TO JAIL: House Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara who resigned last week after being accused of raping a staffer was arrested on Sunday evening from his official residence in Baluwatar. He refused to go in a police van, and was taken in this private vehicle instead. Photos: RSS</figcaption></figure>Police on Sunday evening arrested Krishna Bahadur Mahara who resigned as Speaker of Nepal’s Parliament last week for allegedly raping a female staff member. Police arrived at the Speaker’s official residence in several pickup vans and took him into custody to investigate the case. The arrest has also effectively removed Mahara from his position as Member of Parliament for the ruling Nepal Communist Party from Rolpa district. Mahara reportedly refused to ride in the police van, and a private car entered his official residence to take him away. He is being detained at the Singha Durbar police station.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/court-orders-mahara-arrest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Court orders Mahara arrest</a><a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/plot-thickens-in-nepal-speaker-rape-case/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Plot thickens in Nepal Speaker rape case</a>The Parliament staffer had called police from her residence, saying she had been raped by Mahara on 29 September. Although Police arrived at the room almost immediately and inspected the premises, they said they could not start an investigation unless a formal complaint was filed. On Tuesday, the woman retracted her earlier statement, saying Mahara had never come to her room, raising suspicions that she was either being offered money for her silence or being threatened. However, the victim changed her mind again and filed an official complaint at the Baneswor Police Station on Friday night. On Saturday, the Court acted on it, ordering Police to arrest Mahara and begin an investigation.  The on-again, off-again saga of the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/plot-thickens-in-nepal-speaker-rape-case/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rape allegation against the Speaker of Nepal’s Parliament</a> lasted a week, and the arrest on Sunday showed that the ruling party was under tremendous public opinion pressure to abide by the rule of law. It probably expects the arrest to defuse the situation, and allay growing criticism of the state of impunity in Nepal.  <figure><img width="1800" height="1200" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141152/636a5f709c7e80680e056e2cjpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption>Police officers and media personnel outside Mahara's official residence in Baluwatar from where he was arrested on Sunday evening.</figcaption></figure><img width="1800" height="1200" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141152/636a5f749c7e80680e056e2djpeg.jpg" alt="">On 29 September, the victim called Police, senior female member of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) as well as reporters saying she had been roughed up and raped by Mahara who had come to her room with a bottle of whiskey. After the news broke, Prime Minister K P Oli and NCP co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal met hurriedly and advised Mahara to resign from his post as Speaker. Mahara did tender his resignation, but said it was ‘until the investigation is complete’, and he also did not resign from his parliamentary seat. Police had collected the whiskey bottle glasses as well as Mahara’s spectacles which had broken during the scuffle. However, Police did not arrest Mahara saying no formal complaint had been filed, and did not provide the victim with any security.By Friday, however, the woman was taken for a medical test and she was given two police bodyguards to prevent her from being harmed. The Mahara case has been seen as a litmus test of the political leadership of the NCP, at a time when the party has been under fire for non-performance, corruption and impunity.  If convicted, Mahara can face up to ten years in jail. According to Nepal’s criminal law, rape of someone above 18 carries a jail sentence of 7-10 years for the perpetrator, and the sentence is half that if it is attempted rape.Mahara, 61, has been a committed communist and in politics for the past four decades, starting out as a member of the radical Mashal group and was elected to Parliament from Rolpa at age 32. When a faction of the Communist Party launched an armed struggle, he joined Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Baburam Bhattarai as a senior leader. Known for being close to Dahal, Mahara was dragged into controversy in 2009 after a recording of a phone call he made with a Chinese contact asking for Rs500 million to buy MPs. No investigation was launched, and Mahara was never punished.He played an important role in peace talks to end the war, and served as Finance Minister and Home Minister in successive Maoist-led governments after 2008. As Communication Minister he was once more tied to a scam related to telecom contracts, and even Maoist cadre accused him of siphoning off money meant for ex-guerrillas in Maoist cantonments. Again, there was no probe, and it was well established that he had Dahal’s protection.This time, it looks like Dahal and other comrades cannot save Mahara. Public outrage was already growing over non-performance and corruption in the NCP government. The government has been ridiculed in social media for not being able to resolve the rape-murder of Nirmala Panta two years ago. For many the Mahara rape allegation is emblematic of the impunity enjoyed by senior politicians in Nepal. The NCP may have no choice this time, but to cut and cut cleanly.

Mahara arrested

The Kathmandu District Court on Sunday ordered the arrest of former Speaker of the Nepal Parliament, Krishna Bahadur Mahara, who resigned from his post last week after an allegation of rape by a member of his staff.The woman had filed a complaint at the Baneswor Police Station on Friday night, and the Court has acted on that complaint, making it possible for Police to arrest Mahara and begin investigation.Read also: <a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/mahara-arrested/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mahara arrested</a>Earlier analysis filed on Saturday 5 OctoberThe on-again, off-again saga of the rape allegation against the Speaker of Nepal’s Parliament took on a new twist after the victim lodged a formal complaint with the Police on Friday, a move that could have far-reaching political consequences.The complaint at Baneswor Police Station now paves the way for Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara to be formally arrested for the alleged rape on the night of 29 September in the rented room of a member of the Parliament staff with whom he is said to have close relations.That night the victim called Police, senior female member of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) as well as reporters saying she had been roughed up and raped. After the news broke, Prime Minister K P Oli and NCP co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal met hurriedly and advised Mahara to resign from his post as Speaker.He did tender his resignation, but said it was ‘until the investigation is complete’, and he also did not resign from his parliamentary seat. Although the Police inspected the room and collected evidence last Sunday, it did not ask the victim to carry out a medical test with fluid samples to confirm rape. Police did not arrest Mahara saying no formal complaint had been filed, and did not provide the victim with any security.However, the next day, the alleged victim withdrew her accusation, contradicting her earlier statement saying Mahara never came to her room. Her posts on Facebook accused the opposition of trying smear ‘Mahara Sir’. There was widespread speculation that the 40-yar-old victim had either been threatened or paid to withdraw the complaint.But in a dramatic about turn on Friday, she filed a formal complaint -– six days after the alleged incident. The ball is now in the Police’s court, and ultimately it will be a test of the political leadership of the NCP if it will allow Mahara to be taken into custody and allow the Police to take the investigation forward without interference.With Dasain having started, there could be excuses for delays, but legal experts say that holidays should not stop Police from taking Mahara into custody. If convicted, Mahara can face up to ten  years in jail. According to Nepal’s criminal law, rape of someone above 18 carries a jail sentence of 7-10 years for the perpetrator, and the sentence is half that if it is attempted rape.Mahara, 61, has been a committed communist and in politics for the past four decades, starting out as a member of the radical Mashal group and was elected to Parliament from Rolpa at age 32. When a faction of the Communist Party launched an armed struggle, he joined Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Baburam Bhattarai as a senior leader.Known for being close to Dahal, Mahara was dragged into controversy in 2009 after a recording of a phone call he made with a Chinese contact asking for Rs500 million to buy MPs. No investigation was launched, and Mahara was never punished.He played an important role in peace talks to end the war, and served as Finance Minister and Home Minister in successive Maoist-led governments after 2008. As Communication Minister he was once more tied to a scam related to telecom contracts, and even Maoist cadre accused him of siphoning off money meant for ex-guerrillas in Maoist cantonments. Again, there wwas no probe, and it was well established that he had Dahal’s protection.This time, it looks like Dahal and other comrades cannot save Mahara. Public outrage was already growing over non-performance and corruption in the NCP government. The government has been ridiculed in social media for not being able to resolve the rape-murder of Nirmala Panta two years ago.For many the Mahara rape rape allegation is emblematic of the impunity enjoyed by senior politicians in Nepal. The NCP may have no choice this time, but to cut and cut cleanly.

Court orders Mahara arrest

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141148/636a5efb9c7e80680e056dfbjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="1329"/><figcaption>Illustration: DIWAKAR CHHETRI</figcaption></figure>It is once more that time of year when Nepalis eat, drink, and make merry in family reunions. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/octoberfest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dasain</a> is what binds the Nepali world, together with our shared history and culture. The festival has transcended religion to become a time for society and the nation to unite in common celebration, and revive our collective hope for the future.Dasain is said to have its origins in a proto-Hindu harvest festival, the myths about the victory of good over evil and the goddess impaling a water buffalo came much later. With the monsoon over, paddy fields turn from green to gold, the clouds start blowing from west to east again, there is a nip in the air, and the hills are deep green. The snow mountains come out, shiny with new snow.In recent years, as more and more Nepalis travel overseas for work, study or to emigrate, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/dasain-goes-global,3950" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the diaspora Dasain</a> is a stark reminder of how family members endure prolonged periods of separation. With more than 15% of Nepal’s population living and working abroad, the flights into Kathmandu are full of Nepalis coming home for the festival. Kathmandu itself empties out as people go home to their ancestral villages.Dasain has always had an escapist character. It is a time when people can forget their daily struggle against unemployment, inflation, shortages, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/a-klepto-republic/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">corruption</a> and the lack of basic services. Those problems can wait, while we re-establish family ties, and perhaps even reaffirm a hope for the future, holding out in the belief that things will get better. However dark the clouds are, the sun will come out -- Dasain gives us a booster shot of optimism.But, we have to admit, the weeks leading up to Dasain this year did not give us much reason to hope. Ruling party hotheads attacked and beat up self-styled royalist Gyanendra Shahi for having ridiculed <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/nepali-times-search/?q=yogesh+bhattarai" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Minister of Civil Aviation and Tourism Yogesh Bhattarai</a>. Police just stood by. Minendra Rijal of the Nepali Congress was roughed up by NCP goondas in Tanahu. NCP co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal regularly threatens the opposition in his public speeches, while Information Minister Gokul Banskota does not even try to hide his disdain for a <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/creeping-control-over-the-press-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free press</a>.But perhaps nothing indicates the state of impunity and lawlessness in this country more than the rape charge against House Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara this week. Prime Minister Oli and Dahal probably realised how seriously this would affect the NCP’s public image, and acted swiftly to instruct Mahara to tender a written resignation, which he did reluctantly and in ambivalent language. Predictably, the woman who accused the speaker of unspeakable crime has been 'persuaded' to retract her complaint.The Prime Minister seems to be fully aware of the level of disillusionment among Nepalis about the party to which they gave a two-thirds majority in Parliament. Oli himself is having <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/in-wait-and-wait-mode/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">serious health issues</a>, the government had <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/four-year-itch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">failed in service delivery</a>, it has a dismal record of non-performance, and Nepalis every day negotiate infrastructure that is in a dangerous state of disrepair.None of that had particularly worried the prime minister’s office, but the Mahara scandal appears to have seriously rattled the NCP, and forced it into crisis mode. By taking prompt action to force the Speaker out, Oli is showing belated decisiveness. The government shutting down for holidays will provide Oli some respite, but ultimately the prime minister will be tempted to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/dangerous-driving/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reshuffle his cabinet</a> -- an age-old method for Nepal’s rulers to buy time to defuse a crisis.This time, things may have gone a bit too far for a reshuffle to resolve. The rot goes to the top. When tycoons have access to Oli’s parlour at Baluwatar or his hospital bed in Singapore, one has to question how much the collusion between contractors and the government is hurting the country. Roads never get repaired, bridges never get built, national pride projects are a national shame.Nearly half-way through its tenure in office, Prime Minister Oli will have to do some serious thinking over the holidays. How is he going to make up for lost time and get this government machinery cranked up? If he <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/own-worst-enemy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has not been able to govern and perform</a> in the past two years, it is unlikely he can get anything done.Oli is probably banking on the visit to Kathmandu by Chinese President Xi Jiping later this month to lift his stature and nationalist credentials. There will probably some grandiose announcement, perhaps of the trans-Himalayan railway.Being the wily politician that he is, Oli will not have to be told that people are looking for immediate and tangible hope that tomorrow will be better than today. This Dasain, most Nepalis will be trying not to think about tomorrow.Read also:<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/octoberfest/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Octoberfest,</a> Editorial<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/banner/dangerous-driving/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dangerous driving</a>, Kunda Dixit<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/four-year-itch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Four-year itch</a>, Editorial<h2>10 years ago this week</h2>In his column, State of the State, ten years ago in <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/issue/471" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issue #471 of 25 September-1 October 2009,</a> C K Lal analyses the evolution of the Dasain festival:Ironically, those who gave Dasain pan-Nepal acceptability - the Janjatis of the mid-mountains from the east and west - have begun to call for its boycott. Within the British and Indian Gurkhas, the lahures kept the faith through their own secular celebrations of religious festivities such as Dasain and Tihar.Thus they kept in touch with the idea of Nepal and Nepalis rather than their own ethnic particularities. As long as these indefatigable fighters continue to serve abroad, Dasain celebrations there will retain their secular character.<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/issue/471"><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221108141148/636a5efd9c7e80680e056dfcjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="500" height="772"></a>

mahara

Mahara acquitted

The rise and fall of Comrade Mahara

Mahara arrested

Court orders Mahara arrest

DASAIN ONCE MORE