Monarchists/Royalists Currently Ascendant

By Shashi P.B.B. Malla

The Monarchists’ “Pawn Gambit”

There can be little doubt that the monarchists/royalists are leading in the court of public opinion.

The apologists of the Himalayan Republic are increasingly at a loss for words. Undoubtedly, the ball is in the Royalists’ court.

However, a better analogy would be the game of chess. The Monarchists are attacking relentlessly, whereas the Republicans are in a defensive posture. Only diehard supporters and hangers-on are cheering them on.

Unfortunately, the momentum of the monarchists received a rude shock with the appointment of Navaraj Subedi  as chairman of the committee of the movement to restore the Hindu Monarchy.

He is the wrong man, in the wrong place, at the wrong time.

Instead of a forward strategy using the Queen, or at least the Bishop or Knight, the protagonists choose to advance a mere Pawn. This “Pawn’s Gambit” is bound to fail [in chess parlance].

It is quite possible that the monarchists’ momentum may lose steam, if corrective measures are not undertaken immediately.

System Renewal & Hindu Monarchy Hand in Hand

The detractors of the restoration of Hindu Monarchy are blissfully unaware that this is only a means to an end.

They are ignorant of the fact that there is a close symbiosis between the reinstatement of the Hindu monarchy and the restoration of genuine democracy, which entails good governance at its core.

Thus, together with the installation of the future king on the throne, an efficient and inclusive technocratic government must assume office and usher in an age of modern statecraft.

Therefore, it is not only a question of the restoration of the Hindu monarchy, but of Prajatantra (genuine, functioning democracy) as such.

This entails inclusive and participatory system of governance from the grassroots upward.

The beauty of the whole enterprise is that there are hardly any dissenting voices – except of course the Dons and their close Mafia families – to the indubitable fact that the Himalayan Republic is rotten to the core and must be replaced.

The first act of the new People’s Movement must, therefore, be regime change.

The new/old king will be the guardian of the people’s rights and the symbol of national unity, and the representative of the nation’s sovereignty, incorporating its inviolable territorial integrity – far better than the presidents of the Republic.

Hypothesis, Conjecture, Wishful Thinking, Authentic Projection?

The honest/sincere/candid/straight answers to the following basic questions should colour the attitude in support or objection to either the Himalayan Republic or the nascent Himalayan Kingdom:

1. Are the current crop of befuddled, inept Dons at the helm of affairs capable of suddenly reforming themselves and their style of leadership – and making sacrifices in the service of the nation?  [Not forgetting, of course, that they are infused with degeneracy and decadence, and drunk with power].

2. Can the existing political system with the help of current Netas-for-life [The English word ‘Leaders’ would be a sacrilege] be renewed/reorganized/reconstructed in the service of the people?

3. Can the people themselves be thoroughly mobilized to bring about meaningful change in the current defunct system?

The stark reality is that:

1. There are now genuine leaders who have been following the dismal and depressing trajectory of the Himalayan Republic and are now ready and willing to shoulder the responsibilities of the emerging and rising new Himalayan Kingdom – first and foremost H.M. King Gyanendra.

2. After regime change and the inevitable victory of the forces of progress over those of retrogression – a new system can be evolved to suit the potential of the Nepali people.

3. The guiding mantra is that the Nepalese people themselves are excited to embark on a fresh endeavor of being masters of their own fate!

The Himalayan Republic is dead, Long Live the new Himalayan Kingdom! 

The writer can be reached at: shashipbmalla@hotmail.com