Nepal Nexus, the English translation and updated version of the 2013 bestseller <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/by-the-way/nepal-politics-india-interest-prayogshala,176" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prayogshala </a>by editor <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=18914#.XkEYJjIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sudheer Sharma</a>, offers readers a vivid account of Nepal’s ten-year conflict, the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=11741#.XkEaUTIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2006 people’s movement</a>, the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/nepal-from-royal-to-republic,3736" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fragile transition</a> that followed, to the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/02/13/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-maoists/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Maoists’ subsequent rise to power</a>. The English version was translated by Sanjaya Dhakal for Penguin India and released last year.Sharma, who was and is once more the editor of Kantipur, begins with a personal account of his experience as a war reporter during the time of the state-Maoist conflict. Although he describes the book as an inside account of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the reader finds it more of an account of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Shadowing-prachanda,3383" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Prachanda</a>’s rise to power, and only tangentially of the party he led.  Sharma has a soft corner for Prachanda, and does not conceal his sympathies for the erstwhile revolutionaries. ‘It is my view that the major credit for <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/issue/346/Editorial/13468#.XkEbDDIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">restructuring the state</a> should go to the Maoists,’ may come across to many as giving too much credit to the CPN(M) for what was essentially a violent shortcut to power. To be fair, the journalist in Sharma tries to be objective and balance his views with those of others with explanations, experiences, and interviews. (See box, below) <figure><img width="640" height="831" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b74439c7e80680e062384jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Photo: KIRAN PANDEY</figcaption></figure>The translation may not exactly be a page-turner, but has gripping revelations about the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/The-turning-point-war-nepal,3986" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dynamics</a> between the palace, Parliament, the (Royal) Nepal Army, Nepal Police and the Maoists between 1996 and 2006. The account of just how much India’s <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/by-the-way/Nepal-elections-India-influence,164" target="_blank" rel="noopener">intelligence agency RAW </a>was micro-managing Nepali politics through the conflict, during and after the <a href="https://nepalitimes.atavist.com/three-kings-in-four-days-nepal-massacre" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2001 royal palace massacre</a> gives new insight into the cloak and dagger world of spooks.One of the highlights of Sharma’s book is the treatment of Nepal’s relations with its neighbours, in particular India’s role in helping the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8406#.XkEfxDIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Maoists join mainstream politics – apparently as a way to weaken a nationalist monarchy </a>as well as to show India’s own Maoist revolutionaries that there was an electoral path to power. <img width="200" height="275" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b74459c7e80680e062385jpeg.jpg" alt=""><a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5110#.XkEgDDIzbIU">Sh</a><a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5110#.XkEgDDIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">yam Saran</a>, who was Indian ambassador to Nepal (2002-2004) and went on to become foreign secretary (2004-2006), looks at the broader question of India’s place in the world in his book. There are sections in <a href="https://www.amazon.in/How-India-Sees-World-Kautilya/dp/9386228858/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1581327963&amp;refinements=p_27%3AShyam+Saran&amp;s=books&amp;sr=1-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How India Sees the World</a> that deal with the same historical period as <a href="https://www.amazon.in/Nepal-Nexus-Inside-Account-Maoists/dp/0670089303/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=nepal+nexus%5C&amp;qid=1581328025&amp;s=books&amp;sr=1-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nepal Nexus</a>, but from New Delhi’s perspective. Saran came as <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Saran-undid-monarchy-deal,2081" target="_blank" rel="noopener">envoy after the royal massacre</a> and witnessed Gyanendra’s four years of steady power consolidation. By 2005, the king was in open confrontation with New Delhi, and Saran writes that India's <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=13431#.XkEg3TIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘twin pillar’ doctrine</a> to support <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=317#.XkEguDIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">constitutional monarchy and parliamentary democracy</a> became untenable, and Delhi turned to the seven party alliance with the Maoists (nicknamed ‘SPAM’).Almost every Nepali is an expert on relations with India, and social media has profuse conspiracy theories about Big Brother. Many writers and diplomats have dissected Indo-Nepal relations during the turbulent period from 1990-2017. For his part, Sharma tries to provide evidence of India’s constant meddling in Nepal’s internal affairs – right from the 1950 Treaty to the 2015 blockade.Sections of Saran’s book that deal with Nepal see things quite differently, of course, and that is to be expected. He has an opposite take on New Delhi’s behind-the-scenes dealings in Kathmandu. In the chapter ‘India and Nepal: A Relationship of Paradox’, Saran describes the souring of the relations between the neighbours after the promulgation of Nepal’s Constitution and the economic blockade that followed in 2015.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/campaigning-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Campaigning in Nepal</a>, EditorialSaran defends India’s handling of that tumultuous period, absolving <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5604#.XkEhOzIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">South Block</a> and the PMO of all blame for allowing bilateral relations, which Prime Minister Modi had normalised with his<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/by-the-way/india-foreign-policy-shift-offers-nepal-chance-to-redefine-ties,339" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> 2014 visit to Kathmandu</a>, to disintegrate. The chapter may as well have been titled: ‘How the Indian State Wrecked Relations with Nepal’.Saran describes how it was India that steered the Maoists into above-ground politics in 2006, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2016/02/03/rethinking-secularism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">introduced secularism into Nepal’s new constitution</a>, and how it opposed that same constitution for the sake of the rights of Madhesis. Ironies of ironies: regime change in India meant the BJP is no longer a big fan of Nepal’s secular constitution.Sudheer Sharma’s analysis of the Indian blockade calls a spade a spade: India was angry about not being consulted about the new <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/GUEST-COLUMN/madhes-more-integrated-with-rest-of-nepal,366" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Madhes province which did not include five contentious provinces</a>: Jhapa, Morang, Sunsari in the east and Kanchanpur, Kailali in the western Tarai. ‘After it refused to entertain India’s counsel and coercion, many in Nepal thought India decided it was time to teach a lesson to its small neighbour … with the ultimate weapon of a border blockade,’ writes Sharma, providing examples of covert Indian involvement in supporting the<a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/07/21/unrest-in-madhes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> Madhes agitation</a>.Read Also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/eminently-beneficial-for-india-and-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Eminently beneficial for India and Nepal</a>, Ajit Baral Shyam Saran sees it differently: ‘Supplies from India to Nepal were blocked by the Madhesis in the border leading to hostile sentiments among Nepalis.’ Saran sticks with the story that India supported the rights of Madhesis in the writing of the 2015 Constitution. He writes, rather condescendingly, that India has always been generous towards Nepal and that, despite all the help, Nepalis always misunderstood its large neighbour.Interestingly, <a href="https://cprindia.org/sites/default/files/A%20complex%20nexus%20in%20Nepal.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Shyam Saran himself reviewed Sudheer Sharma’s Nepal Nexus</a> in the India’s Business Standard newspaper. He wrote: ‘The book creates the impression that the Madhesi issue is somehow created by India and that it flows from the ethnic links of the people of the Nepal Tarai and those living across the border in UP and Bihar. However, there are <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/indian-nepalis-alarmed-by-citizenship-amendment-bill/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">several million Indian citizens of Nepali origin</a> especially in Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Assam, and they are all from the hill districts of Nepal. Mr Sharma could have at least acknowledged some of these additional and significant dimensions of the relationship between the two countries.’Read Also: <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/autopsy-of-a-blockade%20,2863" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Autopsy of a blockade</a>, EditorialShyam Saran goes on to accuse Sharma of making an ‘illogical claim’ that India was afraid that the communist insurgency would spill over from the Nepal into the Gangetic plains and destabilise the entire region, and that this was why it felt Nepal’s Maoists needed to be mainstreamed.Bilateral relations between Kathmandu and New Delhi are once more at a low point because of the border dispute over <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/territorialism/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kalapani</a>, and perspectives that do not engage beyond the state’s official line will not help find common ground. Hopefully, both political leaders and the general public in India and Nepal and India will better understand the complex chemistry of their ties, and will find common ground. Alas, neither of these two books will help do that. <figure><img width="418" height="634" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b74479c7e80680e062386jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img width="434" height="660" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b74499c7e80680e062387jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><h2>Sudheer Sharma on Nepal Nexus</h2> Sudheer Sharma has returned once more to Kantipur as editor, and speaks about the English translation of his book, The Nepal Nexus. He spoke to Nepali Times this week about how it has been received in Nepal and India.  Nepali Times: What has been the reaction to the translation of your book?Sudheer Sharma:  I have always wanted English readers to be able to read and have documentation that would help them in research. I have been to various book shops in and around Kathmandu to sign my books, but it was in Pokhara, that I saw the overwhelming reaction of readers. At this week’s Kantipur Conclave there was much positive response. It has been selling well in Delhi’s Khan Market.  What is different in Nepal Nexus compared to Prayogshala?Prayogshala was released in 2013 after the Constituent Assembly had just been dissolved. Since then there have been significant changes in Nepal’s politics. Nepal Nexus is not just a translated version of Prayogshala but is updated with four additional chapters that look at the promulgation of constitution in 2015, the Madhes movement, Indian blockade, the rise of KP Oli and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/tsu-namo-2-0-and-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Narendra Modi </a>and the <a style="background-color: #ffffff; font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/political-geography-of-india-nepal-china-ties/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">growing relationship with China.</a> <figure><img width="1440" height="1440" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109101132/636b744b9c7e80680e062388jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>How did the idea of Nepal Nexus come about? Soon after the release of Prayogshala, Penguin India contacted me to release the book in English as well. It sounded interesting. Sanjaya Dhakal did the translation and with initial help from Thomas Bell.While many have appreciated your book, some have not. Whether official or unofficial, India never declared the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/opinion/aftershocks-of-the-blockade/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2015 border blockade</a>. But I have documented the facts with research and investigation. Naturally, some people do not like what it reveals. Some readers think the book is based on the history of Maoists movement, but in reality, it’s about three entities that have shaped Nepal – the monarchy, Maoists and New Delhi. The monarchy is gone, and the Maoist party is dissolved, and we are still trying to mend our relationship with New Delhi.Former Indian foreign secretary Shyam Saran criticised your book in a review.  He has not challenged me factually. We all have different interpretations and it is fair to have different opinions. As a matter of fact, I liked his review. The book is now public property, everyone is entitled to pass on their opinions. More discussion, the merrier.Where is India-Nepal relations now? Nepal and India need to have a relationship that is built on equality and respect. India has always tried to micromanage Nepal, and that was clear when they sent a special envoy to stop the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/thebrief/2015/09/20/peoples-constitution/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Constitution in 2015.</a> It was the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/As-It-Happens/when-the-blockade-ends,618" target="_blank" rel="noopener">border blockade</a> that really damaged relations. Nepal and India should have a vibrant relationship, there are problems and we need to jointly find solutions to. There are more problems from India, but Nepal too has problems.  How can the two neighbours redefine their relationship?There are many clauses and treaties that should be revised. Particularly the <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=16852#.XkEdXjIzbIU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">1950 treaty</a> and some other clauses that have kept Nepal in an unequal and unfair position. India needs to change its mindset and should not treat Nepal like its ‘little brother’. Nepal also has to change its behaviour. We are overly dependent on India, and this needs to be reduced. If <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/eminently-beneficial-for-india-and-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">treaties and agreements are revised</a>, I am sure the relationship between these two neighbours will be stronger than before. Readers' write:It is strange that the role of China did not find a mention in this interview with Sudheer Sharma. Everything said an done, China has figured as the new critical variable for redefining and mending Nepal's ties with India. Compared to the 2015 days, India is more amenable and respectful in its dealings with Nepal . For instance, the cross border petroleum pipeline that has been on the anvil for ages has since been realized, only because, following China's major inroad into Nepal, India found out that its traditionally sadistic attitude of browbeating Nepal into submission would work no longer. While India has been viscerally unprepared to deal with smaller nieghbours in equal terms, Nepal's own politicians of whichever stated ideological hue have been unprepared to put Nepal First in their dealings with their overlords in India. Much has happened since India pushed Nepal into China's embrace beginning 2015 blockade. The troublesome Madhesi front has quietened. Open interferences from New Delhi or its outpost at Lainchaur have become things of the past. The belligerents in New Delhi have learned their lesson: Today, the whole of India blames them for pushing Nepal into China's embrace. While Nepal must be enormously grateful to China, there is much more that the country should be doing towards helping the Nepali politicians to put Nepal First in their own ideological commitment s and dealing with the rest of the world.Bihari Krishna Shrestha

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Two takes on the Nepal-India nexus

Kathmandu ground to a halt on Friday as pro- and anti-monarchy protests rocked separate parts of the capital. While the Socialist Front led by the Maoist Centre Party held a large rally in the centre of the city, a group agitating to reinstate Nepal as a Hindu kingdom gathered on the outskirts.&nbsp; The two rallies were kept apart, but pro-monarchy protesters resorted to arson and looting, setting fire to buildings in the Tinkune neighbourhood and attacking newspaper offices, party buildings and ransacking a branch of the Bhatbhateni department store. Police fired tear gas and live rounds after stone pelting protesters tried to prevent fire trucks from trying to put out blazes. One protester and a reporter died and 22 people, including several riot policemen, were injured.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_10a340ec54625655b84320e9708349f32ae410ebd66dc2e9006d74c26e24e723.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250328130336_10a340ec54625655b84320e9708349f32ae410ebd66dc2e9006d74c26e24e723" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_4095596005d5c744222ed813ef2621c887fec3f3d8cb99b0580f9f4e241bdd55.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250328130336_4095596005d5c744222ed813ef2621c887fec3f3d8cb99b0580f9f4e241bdd55" data-rendition-name="original" width="1810" height="1207" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_b64ae8a70d36a7a2bbc4d9f4f51344a92531a735f653dd25f97700e170b7f12c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250328130336_b64ae8a70d36a7a2bbc4d9f4f51344a92531a735f653dd25f97700e170b7f12c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>  The pro-monarchy rally was organised by the United People’s Movement Committee for the Restoration of the Monarchy, which had the support of the royalist RPP party and was led by business tycoon Durga Prasai and the 86-year-old former Panchayat politician Nawaraj Subedi.&nbsp; The government had assigned both the protesting groups separate parts of the city so as to minimise chances of confrontation. The pro-monarchy rally turned violent after Prasai broke through police cordons with his vehicle, with supporters following. Across town, a much larger flag-waving crowd marched through the streets and gathered to listen to speeches by leaders of the Socialist Front made up of Maoist Centre, the CPN- Unified Socialists, the Nepal Samajwadi Party and the Communist Party of Nepal led by a breakaway Maoist faction of Netra Bikram Chand.&nbsp; The Socialist Front is in the opposition and has blamed the rise of royalists to the non-performance of Prime Minister K P Oli’s governing coalition. The Maoists were till last year in their own coalition with the Nepali Congress, until it joined up with Oli’s UML.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_36c4b5cd97720a86d4cc65d680211644bbdd23ba9d872ca33ecde56cf7a83bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250328130336_36c4b5cd97720a86d4cc65d680211644bbdd23ba9d872ca33ecde56cf7a83bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="1772" height="1181" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_6598409e322e0680bb01e00306842343642ee662a6f95e0d097478c0517879c3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250328130336_6598409e322e0680bb01e00306842343642ee662a6f95e0d097478c0517879c3" data-rendition-name="original" width="1933" height="1288" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>  &nbsp;“This country cannot return to autocratic, dynastic rule that destroyed our nation,” said former prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal of the UML-US. “The Nepali people have no interest in being servants to anybody.” Speakers accused the monarchists of getting support from elements of the Hindu-right in India. Former king Gyanendra had met Uttar Pradesh’s cleric Chief Minister Yogi Adiyanath several times in the past year, and posters with the Yogi have been seen at previous royalist rallies. Chronic corruption, impunity, poor service delivery and lack of jobs has fed public anger at the three established parties that have taken turns to rule Nepal for the past 20 years or more.&nbsp; Adding fuel to the fire was the sacking this week of the popular head of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) Kulman Ghising, and his replacement by the prime minister’s brother-in-law, Hitendra Dev Shakya. &nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_340647eb1ac3e611a7fe9ea5cabe6bc280ec02fd9162e1fdce81a3c7101b6072.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250328130336_340647eb1ac3e611a7fe9ea5cabe6bc280ec02fd9162e1fdce81a3c7101b6072" data-rendition-name="original" width="1872" height="1179" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_b0e1012e17637ceebf2611db796ae745d274636583974f7595b4ab79670b5c37.jpg" data-media-id="editor_6" data-image-id="20250328130336_b0e1012e17637ceebf2611db796ae745d274636583974f7595b4ab79670b5c37" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>  In his speech Maoist chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal seemed more introspective and moderated his criticism of the current government.&nbsp; “Perhaps it is because we republicans were unable to live up to the expectations of the people that the forces that were buried in the rubble of history have dared raise their heads once again today,” Dahal told the crowd.&nbsp; While these speeches were going on, tension was escalating in Tinkune as pro-monarchists trashed and set fire to an office block, the office of the CPN-Unified Socialists, vandalised the Annapurna Media building, and attempted to break into the offices of the Maoist Centre. &nbsp;&nbsp; A curfew was imposed in Tinkune and surrounding areas, affecting travellers entering and leaving Kathmandu. Nearby Kathmandu airport was closed for two hours.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_b9d567d96a519dfdf7627ca9bf372a441b47a5f7dc709df94e2042274da1fe23.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20250328130336_b9d567d96a519dfdf7627ca9bf372a441b47a5f7dc709df94e2042274da1fe23" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_277512a9bff76fd425e964f41854f7abd835ce3f38b68e95ec8a4cdd3d4e10c5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250328130336_277512a9bff76fd425e964f41854f7abd835ce3f38b68e95ec8a4cdd3d4e10c5" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_aa52420cd50c238a9cbd7d49855fbd45586098a92dba14f1b5ef3dfad43293b0.jpg" data-media-id="editor_9" data-image-id="20250328130336_aa52420cd50c238a9cbd7d49855fbd45586098a92dba14f1b5ef3dfad43293b0" data-rendition-name="original" width="1722" height="1144" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>  Royalist morale was boosted earlier this month to welcome former king Gyanendra to Kathmandu from a trip to western Nepal. Gyanendra has been king twice, and was ousted when an elected Constituent Assembly voted to abolish the monarchy in 2008. In 2015 Nepal’s new Constitution officially declared the country a secular federal republic. Royalists like former BBC journalist Rabindra Mishra have been exhorting the Nepal Army and Police to join the protests to reinstate the king, which many have described as provocative and dangerous rhetoric. Earlier this month Mishra told an Indian tv channel that New Delhi should support the reinstatement of a Hindu monarchy in Nepal.&nbsp; Indian leaders including External Affairs Ministry S Jaishankar have reportedly told Nepal’s leaders that they do not want to interfere in the country’s internal affairs. As tensions escalated on Friday, Mishra absolved himself and the pro-monarchy protesters of responsibility for the casualties and property damage.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_fef2e6aee4a59e2fbec96bba5814af5c18a9390b532fd6cb8d7cb62e86441cdf.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20250328130336_fef2e6aee4a59e2fbec96bba5814af5c18a9390b532fd6cb8d7cb62e86441cdf" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_a70af2ece39b52108f32560e0a4c06a1ed7cd95e6f0c1c23121e8951b5525cdc.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="20250328130336_a70af2ece39b52108f32560e0a4c06a1ed7cd95e6f0c1c23121e8951b5525cdc" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250328130336_8d5ab4cbabb4d1ab9bc2fa94711168ea1dc854297b5a427a2030536bc87db75c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_12" data-image-id="20250328130336_8d5ab4cbabb4d1ab9bc2fa94711168ea1dc854297b5a427a2030536bc87db75c" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1333" loading="lazy" alt="Pro-monarchy protests 28 March NT"> </figure>  “No mass movements are under the control of its leaders,” said Mishra. “The government must take responsibility for the loss of life and property incurred today.” Despite the tough words, Nepal’s royalist bloc seems to lack a unified front. The RPP’s Rajendra Lingden and RPP-Nepal’s Kamal Thapa have distanced themselves from Prasai.&nbsp; Gyanendra himself appears to be content to ride what he thinks is a wave of public support, and leave the organising to his supporters. He has so far not spoken in public except occasional video appearances. One thing the pro-monarchy protests have done is restore a semblance of unity among the fractious three main parties. Top leaders of the NC, UML and Maoists met earlier this week to chart a response to the royalists, indicating that they are aware of the public mood and are rattled by the scale of support for the former king. Friday’s protests should serve as a stark reminder to Nepal’s serial prime ministers and their parties that if they do not step up and do their job, street protests could escalate.

Republicans and royalists on Nepal’s streets

Usually in winter, air quality in Kathmandu is equivalent to smoking two packs of cigarettes a day. But <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/wildfire-season-starts-early-in-nepal">wildfires raging</a> across central Nepal for the past weeks may have increased that to four packs a day. <a href="https://firms.modaps.eosdis.nasa.gov/map/#d:24hrs;@86.3,28.9,7.0z" target="_blank">NASA’s Fire Information and Resource Management System (FIRMS)</a> uses infrared heat detecting satellites to map the world for fires. While central India and Burma are the worst affected, forests along the central Tarai and the mountains south of Kathmandu have hundreds of red dots — each representing a forest fire. Kathmandu Valley had the worst air quality of any city in the world on Monday afternoon, according to <a href="https://www.iqair.com/world-air-quality">Swiss-based air quality tracker IQ Air</a>. Air Quality Index (AQI) which measures the concentration of tiny suspended particles in the air smaller than 2.5 microns hit 250 because of soot particles from smoke combined with pre-existing pollution from vehicular and industrial emissions.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250331110320_6ea6ed9ab5fceefd0b46e5ba59222eefe6f838b475a75a5ec2c12598ffccb6eb.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250331110320_6ea6ed9ab5fceefd0b46e5ba59222eefe6f838b475a75a5ec2c12598ffccb6eb" data-rendition-name="original" width="1896" height="1000" loading="lazy" alt="NASA FIRMS 29 March"> <figcaption>More than 200 forest fires are burning in central Nepal with prevailing winds blowing it up the valleys to Pokhara and Kathmandu, worsening air quality. This NASA FIRMS satellite image was taken on Sunday afternoon.</figcaption> </figure>  This was ten times higher than what the World Health Organization (WHO) has set as the threshold for healthy air. The microscopic particles cannot be seen by the naked eye and can jump the blood-air divide in capillaries in the lungs causing not just lung infections but also heart disease and cancer.&nbsp; The immediate effects of air pollution are felt in dry and burning eyes, itchy throats, difficulty breathing, headaches, and dizziness. In the longer term, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a major cause of death in Nepal, with the average life expectancy of Kathmandu’s residents has been reduced by 3.5 years.&nbsp; Despite studies, Nepal’s leaders are preoccupied with coalition politics, and little action has been taken to control vehicular emissions with green stickers, curb open garbage burning and industrial pollution. Studies have shown that in winter 60% of the air pollution over Kathmandu is transboundary from the south, and in November it is compounded by crop residue burning by farmers in India and Pakistan which prevailing winds blow up the Himalayan mountains.&nbsp; Forest fires are common in Nepal in the pre-monsoon months as farmers and herders set fire to slopes hoping for green shoots when the rains arrive for their livestock. But successive years of winter drought have meant that the wildfires have been starting earlier, and they spread fast because of high afternoon winds this time of year.&nbsp; On 29 March, there were at least 200 fires burning across central Nepal. The FIRMS satellite image also shows thick blue smoke blanketing the river valleys, reducing visibility and affecting flights. On Monday morning three flights attempting to land at Kathmandu airport had to divert due to runway visibility being below minimum.&nbsp; This level of pollution is classified as ‘extremely unhealthy, and &nbsp;has serious health impact not only on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/poisoning-children-at-school">vulnerable groups</a> like children, the elderly, and those who live with health conditions, but across Kathmandu’s population.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250331110324_b0f149ef5fc3f2657e883c311520b87d45e9636a7464ab418c691dd2bb6f6c7a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="20250331110324_b0f149ef5fc3f2657e883c311520b87d45e9636a7464ab418c691dd2bb6f6c7a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="1778" loading="lazy" alt="Pokhara Wildfire NT"> <figcaption>A fiery sunset over Phewa Lake in Pokhara on Sunday afternoon was caused by thick smoke from forest fires. Photo: KUNDA DIXIT</figcaption> </figure>  After the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-revenge-of-the-rivers"> devastating September floods last year,</a> Kathmandu Valley and much of the country experienced a prolonged drought with little to no winter rain. Such prolonged dry spells raises fire risk, and with Kathmandu’s bowl-shaped topography concentrates pollutants. There are indications that high pollution levels do not just harm human health, but are also beginning to affect tourism. Operators in Pokhara said that there were many negative online posts by visitors unable to see the famous panorama of Machapuchre and the Annapurnas even from Sarangkot. Aviation is also affected, as planes have to circle sometimes for hours burning fuel for visibility to get better at Kathmandu airport. The higher fuel cost is just passed down to customers, making air tickets in and out of Kathmandu some of the highest in the world.&nbsp; Kathmandu’s toxic air quality is not a temporary phenomenon, it has consistently gotten worse. IQ Air places Kathmandu eighth out of 121 capital cities with the worst air quality in 2024, and Nepal is seventh among countries with the highest air pollution. The State of Global Air (SOGA) Report published last June <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/bad-air-and-polluted-politics">revealed </a>more than 50,000 Nepalis died from air pollution in 2021, accounting for 19% of all mortality, just behind high blood pressure. Kathmandu, with a population of four million, has not implemented a concrete policy to curb toxic air despite having formulated various action plans and repeated commitments by the government to protect the environment and control air pollution. The Department of Environment’s &nbsp;2017 Air Quality Management Action Plan for Kathmandu put forward a policy to reduce air pollution caused by vehicles which was approved by the Cabinet, but has yet to be put to practice. The action included the immediate implementation of the Euro 5 emission standard to reduce pollution emitted by vehicles. But Nepal has not even been able to implement Euro 4 standards so far. India, meanwhile, has already moved forward with the implementation of the Euro 6 standards.&nbsp;

No smoke without fire

One video on social media shows Avenues tv videographer Suresh Rajak filming <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/republicans-and-royalists-on-nepal-s-streets">Friday's pro-monarchy protests</a> in Kathmandu through windows shattered by stone-throwing crowds on the street below. The steel sliding door has been padlocked from the outside.&nbsp;
Minutes later, the rioters set fire to the building and stoned a fire truck trying to douse the flames. Rajak’s body was found two hours later after colleagues started searching for him.
Onlinekhabar journalist Dinesh Gautam was taking pictures of protesters snatching a tear gas gun from a policeman, when they attacked him, fracturing his leg. Across the Tinkune intersection, protesters attempted to set fire to the office of Annapurna Post and pelted stones at the Kantipur Television building. A Himalayan TV van was set alight.
Kathmandu woke up on Saturday to watch videos of the violence on their devices, or buy dailies at the newstands. The front pages carried special editorials and publisher’s notes that accused the royalists of deliberately targetting the media.&nbsp;
The <a href="http://www.fnjnepal.org/np">Federation of Nepalese Journalists (FNJ)</a> organised memorials nationwide for Rajak and called the royalist attacks “a black day for press freedom”, comparing it to the days of the absolute monarchy.
“The attacks on the press and activists prove that protesters had no intention of peaceful gathering, they were itching for violence,” former FNJ chair Taranath Dahal said at the event in Kathmandu attended by hundreds of journalists.
Nepal’s public sphere appears to be polarised by former king Gyanendra Shah’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-ghost-of-monarchy-returns-to-haunt-nepal">attempt to reinstate Nepal as a Hindu kingdom</a>. While the mainstream press is vocally critical of the arson and looting unleashed by his supporters on Friday, on social media the picture is more mixed with many accusing the security forces of provoking the protesters.
The posts say riot police used the roof of the building that was torched to fire tear gas shells at the stage prepared for pro-monarchy figures. Police denied doing this. The owner of Avenues tv, Bhaskar Rajkarnikar, who is on a pro-monarchy committee led by Bollywood actress Manisha Koirala, had one of his own journalists burnt to death by royalist protesters. He has since accused the police of not doing enough to douse the fire and rescue Suresh Rajak.&nbsp;
The other fatality on Friday was 29-year-old Sabin Maharjan who got a police bullet in his neck. At least 112 people were injured, including 77 security officials. Apart from newspaper buildings, protestors vandalised private property, party buildings as well as ransacked a Bhatbhateni department store and a pharmaceutical factory.
Late Friday night, pro-monarchy leaders Rabindra Mishra and MP Dhawal Shumsher Rana of the royalist RPP were arrested for instigating demonstrators to engage in violence. The leader of Friday’s protest, business tycoon and alleged bank defaulter<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/street-politics"> Durga Prasai</a>, who rammed his pickup through police cordons, has eluded the police dragnet.
Many have said that the final responsibility for Friday’s violence lies with Gyanendra Shah, who reportedly instructed Prasai directly on Thursday on plans for the rally. The government is reportedly planning to strip Shah of state facilities granted to him since the monarchy was abolished in 2008, and to cancel his passport because of fears he may flee the country.
Ex-king Gyanendra has not yet spoken out about the protests. The RPP under Rajendra Lingden gave moral support to the protest but he had disagreements with Prasai, Mishra and Rana about how and when to hold it. The party meeting on Saturday is said to have decided to continue with “peaceful protests” to restore Nepal’s monarchy. Strategically, it helps Lingden's position within the party that a more radical faction is being blamed for Friday’s violence.
Former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba of the NC on Saturday warned: “If this is what Gyanendra is doing now, what will he do if he is a king? He has never been a constitutional monarch, and he never will be.”
In its Special Editorial titled ‘<a href="https://ekantipur.com/opinion/2025/03/29/special-editorial-make-gyanendra-shah-accountable-16-58.html">Hold Gyanendra Shah Accountable</a>’ on Saturday, Kantipur wrote: ‘Instead of presenting ideological, political, and practical arguments for monarchy the royalists have engaged in vandalism, arson, and looting, proving that frenzy and chaos is inherent in their identity and character.’
Most editorials and analyses emphasised that Friday’s protest was an indication of public dissatisfaction with Nepal’s three main party leaders who have been prime minister multiple times — their corruption, lack of accountability and impunity.
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/sacking-of-nea-chief-exposes-cronyism">Public anger is bubbling away</a>, and Friday’s mayhem in Tinkune was a manifestation of this. This should be a final wake-up call to political parties to clean up their act, and for ageing leadership to hand the reins to younger untainted figures before the next elections in 2027.
This is the reason leaders like Balen Shah and Rabi Lamichhane were elected in 2022, and is proof that at least democracy allows citizens to choose their next leaders.
But for democracy to function, it needs checks and balances in place, and this is where the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/media-matters">role of the media as a watchdog </a>becomes crucial. It is when critical voices are silenced and suppressed, dictators are born.
Following an emergency central committee meeting, the FNJ has announced protests demanding action against those involved in the killing of Rajak. “Protesters might have attacked and killed journalists, vandalised equipment and media outlets, but you will lose,” FNJ’s Deepak Acharya said at Saturday’s memorial. “Nepal’s press has always fought authoritarian control and it will keep fighting.”

Nepal’s déjà vu on Black Friday

The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/time-capsule-of-kathmandu">Kathmandu Valley civilisation</a> can also be called a hydrological culture where sophisticated<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-needs-to-plan-for-plenty-and-scarcity-of-water"> water management</a> allowed densely-packed settlements to co-exist with intense <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/back-to-the-future-of-farming">agriculture</a> on the fertile soil of the former lake-bed. Both needed plenty of water, but <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/geopolitics-of-nepal-s-rivers">the Valley’s rivers </a>are not snowfed. So, the rulers of the kingdoms sourced them from the surrounding hills in an elaborate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/kathmandu-s-ancient-water-spouts-still-functioning">network of canals </a>that did not just provide water for irrigation and fill ponds that recharged ground water, but also ensured urban supply through sunken spouts called hiti.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025032705030_4e0cf8c700f36086c3ea12917b03f2ae1f5224db3c9eac61c02b9a2a0d3ba91a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2025032705030_4e0cf8c700f36086c3ea12917b03f2ae1f5224db3c9eac61c02b9a2a0d3ba91a" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1227" loading="lazy" alt="Hiti "> <figcaption>Photo: HAYLEY SAUL</figcaption> </figure>  The fact that the hiti system is still a vital source of water for the residents of inner city <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/a-green-city-is-a-smart-city">Kathmandu</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/patan-for-beginners">Patan</a> or <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/clash-of-cultures-in-bhaktapur">Bhaktapur </a>despite rapid urbanisation is a testament to the engineering and planning expertise of our ancestors dating back to the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/losing-loose-change-in-nepal">Lichhavi period</a> (400–750 CE) and later expanded during the Malla era (10th–18th century CE). ‘The Liquid Landscape of Kathmandu Valley: Hiti Pranali Water Heritage’ is a new exhibition at<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/patans-museum-piece"> Patan Museum</a> to pay tribute to this <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/culture-cannot-be-an-afterthought">cultural heritage</a> and explores recent archaeological research that offers solutions to not just their preservation but also to maintain them to supplement modern systems.&nbsp; Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/saving-nepal-s-hiti-heritage">Saving Nepal’s hiti heritage</a> The research by Hayley Saul of Heritage for Global Challenges Research Centre and PhD scholar Anoj Khanal at the University of York in the UK entailed using Ground Penetration Radar (GPR) to generate electromagnetic waves to map underground water conduits. Collaborating in the research was engineer and author of the seminal book Hiti Pranali, Padma Sunder Joshi of the Madan Bhandari University of Science and Technology. “We used GPR to explore if we can find filtration systems or functions that allow for the flow and control of water and its distribution,” Saul explained. Although many of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/in-with-the-old-in-nepal">historical monuments of the Valley</a> that were destroyed in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/lessons-not-learned-from-2015-o2etq6zu">the 2015 earthquake </a>have now been rebuilt, there has been minimal work in finding out about underground water conduits that may have been damaged, and in their restitution. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/a-portal-into-patan-s-past-and-present">A portal into Patan’s past and present</a>, Prakriti Kandel GPR technology can be used to map the main canals (raj kulo) and their branches, explore how they were designed and built in the first place, without having to carry out expensive excavation -- which would be difficult anyway because much of the Valley floor is now built up.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025032705038_c51c4e9e1a59d413f652d10f78b1ea7ee49a6c02e4ca01dff29c1ed79df10796.jpg" data-media-id="editor_16" data-image-id="2025032705038_c51c4e9e1a59d413f652d10f78b1ea7ee49a6c02e4ca01dff29c1ed79df10796" data-rendition-name="original" width="14888" height="10627" loading="lazy" alt="Hiti GPR results"> <figcaption>Photo: HAYLEY SAUL and ANOJ KHANAL</figcaption> </figure>  Local governments can now use the data collected by the researchers to map out the network canals, enforce building restrictions if needed and to maintain them.&nbsp; The hiti of Kathmandu were not just functional, but sacred and served as social and spiritual hubs. They provided water for drinking, laundry, household use, rituals, while also serving as gathering places for communities.&nbsp; With the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/water-for-the-ages"> introduction of modern water mains </a>from the late 19th century onwards and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/cost-of-living-in-a-big-city">rapid urban growth</a>, many hiti have fallen into disrepair or dried up. Of the at least 573 stone spouts once counted in Kathmandu Valley, many are lost, damaged, or no longer functional due to neglect, pollution, and encroachment of ponds and canals that feed them. Joshi explains that<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/thimi-s-urban-tissue"> Kathmandu’s ancient urban planners </a>developed the hiti network after the kingdoms located to higher ground to leave the lower areas for <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/aid-rarely-aids-agriculture-in-nepal">agriculture</a>. It forced them to devise ways to bring water through a network of canals fed by aquifiers, and use the gradient to sunken hiti stone spouts for distribution.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025032705034_ae12c7503ea6717c4a727a1c14a500f964e0e86668f9f923950cfb8a6c907d81.png" data-media-id="editor_21" data-image-id="2025032705034_ae12c7503ea6717c4a727a1c14a500f964e0e86668f9f923950cfb8a6c907d81" data-rendition-name="original" width="890" height="677" loading="lazy" alt="Hiti map"> </figure>  The exhibition at Patan Museum also demonstrates that the hiti system incorporates space for living beings, making it a self-functioning <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/people-tigers-trees-and-rivers">ecosystem </a>in itself. The existence of plants such as ferns and algae, and snakes and frogs indicate a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/orchids-of-godavari-phulchoki">healthy ecosystem </a>in the sunken spouts. Absence of such biodiversity today indicates that the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/saving-the-waters-of-life">water systems</a> have been degraded or <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/too-little-too-much-or-too-polluted">polluted</a>. “The<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepal-must-keep-water-on-its-land"> ponds </a>were used to collect water and recharge groundwater and aquifers,” explains Joshi. “They were primarily used for farming ducks which needed the algae in the ponds as food.”&nbsp; Every June just before <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/managing-the-monsoon">the monsoon</a>, Kathmandu Valley’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/kathmandu-marks-ihi-with-a-difference">Newa community </a>ritually cleans wells and other sources of water to maintain drainage and ensure that they serve as effective storage systems. Which is why Kathmandu’s hydrological culture is such an important part of its civilisation to this day.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250327100320_02d01e05c3f8aa3cde1f5af1569e8e09bf84dee88ebda76bb68ee0e0df669c80.png" data-media-id="editor_29" data-image-id="20250327100320_02d01e05c3f8aa3cde1f5af1569e8e09bf84dee88ebda76bb68ee0e0df669c80" data-rendition-name="original" width="1339" height="634" loading="lazy" alt="Kathmandu hiti NT"> </figure>  Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-water-emergency">The Water Emergency</a>, Ajaya Dixit The underground network of water canals also showed advanced engineering skills, and the system was so well built that it has lasted centuries, even though local communities may have lost the skills needed to build and maintain them. Says Anoj Khanal, “The wisdom from the past must be preserve and used. The technique and knowledge must be adapted to the modern times.” The York University team used the GPR technology at 33 hiti sites in Patan, and now hope to do similar research in Kathmandu.&nbsp; The hiti system thrived because it worked in balance with nature which has been disrupted with modern pressures as over-extraction of ground water and the disappearance of recharge ponds. Pollution from septic tanks and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/blueprint-for-a-net-zero-nepal">industrial waste</a> contaminate aquifers, while <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/climate-breakdown-linked-to-thame-flood">climate breakdown</a> alter rainfall patterns. Many hiti that once flowed year-round are now dry even during <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/soon-monsoon">the monsoon</a>.&nbsp; The hiti exhibition showcases the intricate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-history-of-heritage">heritage of Kathmandu Valley</a>’s water supply network and how <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/tech-and-transition-in-nepal">modern technology</a> can help restore them. It is also a call to action to preserve the canals, spouts, ponds and the catchment areas on the Valley’s rim.&nbsp; Says Khanal, “It is possible to revive the hiti using the maps of water conduits underground to figure out alternate routes where water can flow. It is better late than never.” The Liquid Landscape of Kathmandu Valley: Hiti Pranali Water Heritage Until 30 March Patan Museum

the-nepal-nexus

Two takes on the Nepal-India nexus

Republicans and royalists on Nepal’s streets

No smoke without fire

Nepal’s déjà vu on Black Friday

Kathmandu’s liquid landscape