Author: Ranjit Rae

The level and intensity of protests in Nepal have prompted speculation that the protests are a chance for monarchists or Hindu state advocates. There seems to be, however, a misplaced concern. The monarchist parties gained only barely 5 per cent of the vote in the last election. The present movement is in no way concerned with monarchy versus republic or secular versus Hindu state. It is essentially a reaction against corruption, collusion and inefficient leadership. Nepal’s Constitution of 2015, forged amidst a flurry of insurgency and ethnic mobilisation, entrenched republicanism, federalism and secularism as the pillars of its fragile democracy.…