Democratic alliance

By LOK RAJ BARAL

Any ordinary student of politics un-derstands that two and two never become four in politics. It is more so in Nepal where politicians change their parameters after they are enticed to prospect of power if not the actual power. This phenomenon is more applicable to systemic leaders than the Maoists who still remain untested in terms of power. However, from ideological point of view, the Maoists also face the dilemma on whether or not they should water down their stand. If they do it will be at the cost of their identity as a revolutionary party.

Other political parties who could end the partyless regime by forcing the King to accept the sovereignty of people, at least theoretically, are almost marginalised by the King who thinks that the inherent power vested with him empowers him to situate himself. But such intent can hardly meet the spirit of constitutional monarchy as is being practiced in other countries.

The irony of Nepali political development is also similar to the wrong roadmap that occasionally leads to catastrophe on the slight error of calculation. So Nepal’s political course is always uncertain and unpredictable. Expediencies and short-term strategies often influence politics unless some powerful events overtake them. In 1951, King Tribhuvan proclaimed election to a constituent assembly in right earnest but the subsequent developments prompted the same King and his successor to be the source of all powers including the source of the Constitution. The people’s power had been theoretically restored in 1990 but soon after it has gone back to the King. And no parties have resisted effectively. Instead of becoming the force of resistance, political parties are apparently becoming less effective than the public opinion formed by the press, professionals and other members of civic society. Although many of them apportion blame on political parties for creating such a mess, the vociferous criticism made by these groups has not supported the King’s move to rule as an active monarch. As a result, politics is now being crystallised and polarised with all including the parties, both systemic and the Maoists, trying to forge a broad democratic alliance for taking ahead the course of democratic development. And those trying to drum up support for the King particularly for usurpation of state power are now dwindling in number and influence. Political parties, despite their failures, are likely to regain the confidence of people in the name of democracy and human freedoms. The level of consciousness has gone up due to long democratic exercises in the country. The protest movements launched during the partyless regime and the extension and expansion of such exercises since 1990 have made the people assertive regardless of temporary setbacks suffered by the democratic process.

On the basis of these developments and the new lessons of democracy being learned by the people of Nepal— that formal democracy as underlined by the Constitution alone would not do any good to the people at large— are likely to spur the movement for more democratisation of society and polity. Political participation demanded by the people would not be confined to the provisions of the Constitution and laws as participation without empowerment of poor and oppressed sections of the populace would not matter in the new context. When people start demanding both participation and empowerment, politics would be qualitatively different from today. The Nepali democratic elites would be hard-pressed to meet such demands. Unless democratic process addresses these demands, the new social order envisaged by us would not be a reality.

The new trends of polarisation between the protagonists and antagonists of change seem to be drawing a new battle line, though the risk of yet another compromise in the middle course of this forward move would not be ruled out. Nevertheless, demand for greater degree of empowerment making the people real sovereign along with the qualitative transformation of the existing order would be a new reality. Such a scenario can also be visualised in the context of gradual weakening of Nepali monarchy in recent years. The assertive posture of the monarch seems to be temporary as the monarch is highly unlikely to cope with challenges posed by the resurgent popular forces. Although he seems to have realised it when he reiterates his commitment to constitutional monarchy and multiparty system, his words, in the opinion of senior politicians, have seldom matched his action. Such gaps have spread the atmosphere of mistrust between the King and political parties pushing the latter to open a front against the move of the King. The standoff between the King and parliamentary parties continues unless the two sides agree to restore the constitutional process in which participation of parties would be duly recognised.

Putting the system on the constitutional track can however be possible only when the King retracts his action by inviting the political parties to run the government until a fresh election. The first priority is to install an all-party government vested with full power and authority to negotiate with the Maoists without any preconditions. Any negotiated settlement that empowers people should be acceptable to all. Yet, it has by now been clear that any future development needs to insure the active participation of the Maoists. Given the nature of the present constitution and the rigidity and preconditions that intersperse it show very limited scope for making it resilient.

It seems that integration of political forces into the existing constitution would be difficult in view of the minimum demands of the Maoists. So the constituent assembly is likely to be the point of convergence of all forces. If the Maoists agree to abide by the true spirit of the present constitution with suitable reforms, but that is not likely the emerging scenario, the agenda of constituent assembly can be abandoned. However, constitution alone cannot meet the challenges if the political actors involved in it lack commitment and confidence. Internalisation of the basics of democratic values and process is always a prerequisite for the consolidation of democracy. For achieving it, a broad Left-democratic alliance that consists of today’s systemic parties and the Maoists needs to be formed and consolidated. Such a democratic enterprise demands firm commitment to the multiparty system and popular sovereignty from both the Maoists and other parties.

(The author is Executive Chairman of Nepal Centre for Contemporary Studies)

Catch what you want

By CHETANA UPRETY

TV was on and the channels were flipping as if someone had been leafing through a book consisting of infinite pages. This was because of a quarrel between my sister and me over the choice of channels. We ate, went to college and did almost everything together, and amicably. So sibling quarrel was quite unexpected. My choice would always revolve around the English movie channels but she had an obsession for music channels.

I would rather watch "Mad About You" or "Ally Mcbeal" than those irritating "Bakra" shows or the never-ending world chart of the soundtracks. But, we have to give a thumbs-up signal to the cable lines. It has captivated the heart of all, meeting the demands of infinite disciples with varying needs and choices. Today, everyone seems to be a "couchy potato" and these entertainment channels have become quite indispensable companions for everyone. Whether it is music or dance, sports or news, bhajans or religious serials, or nature and wildlife, everything has been hemmed and enclosed in a single bud named television.

The kids of today may not even know who the Prime Minister of this country is, but if you ask them anything concerning the ruling cartoons—the Ninja and the sorts—they will surely surprise you. They need not even think for a fraction of a second for the answers. They would start pouring out answers even before you even finish your questions. The parents wouldn’t have to worry much about their kids for they can be expected to be glued to their favorite cartoon shows. So no mischief.

Although the parents don’t like their children to watch TV continuously, the funny part is that, even they cannot scold their kids, because when it comes to spending time in front of the "entertainment box", the mothers would outdo everyone else. How could they ever resist those serials on Star Plus and Sony woven by Ekta Kapoor and her ilk. They would even surpass their kids in watching these serials. If you don’t know much about these serials or their main characters, you are an ostracized person. The circle of talks and chitchats, who watch them for their main topic of conversation, would be how Komolika made her hair and what Prerna wore in today’s episode, how Mr Bajaj looked with his multi-coloured hair or how Ramola threatened her daughter-in-law. All these serials would follow in a row with all their names, starting with a "K". Sometimes I wonder why these channels were not named as "k-channel" or the likes.

The TV is also the best of friend of those who love sports. All the important events and championships are parceled and broadcast to you, live and exclusive through the television, allowing you to gaze over all the moves and animations with your entire family, at your own place, enjoying your mothers’ home-made delicacies. No ticket costs or quarrels for the front rows!

Even my grandma is very much pleased, words of praise escaping her mouth, for she can vividly reach out to all the temples and religious places through her eyes, even though she might not have been able to physically visit them. Although she complains about the sexy and flimsy dresses of the artistes on TV, she sometimes scolds us for watching English movies. She certainly loves to watch those animated Ramayans and Mahabharatas. They are presented in such details that they remain in one’s memory for a long time. Otherwise, how could we have ever imagined Rawan having ten similar heads with the strikingly thick eyebrows above each pair of eyes ourselves? We couldn’t have visualised everything so vividly. Even lifting of the govardhan parbat by Krishnaji with his small finger looks so authentic and life-like, thanks to the technology.

Even the daddies are quite impressed because they also love to switch to the news channels to keep themselves updated with politics and current world affairs.

The animal lovers don’t complain, either. For they get what they want on the Discovery Channel. The TV with the cable line seems to accommodate everyone on its way, and no one seems to be willing to let it go off. The other sources of entertainment seem to have taken a backseat and the ball seems to be in the TV viewers’ court. Catch what you want.

Hobson-jobson revised

Any English speaker travelling through India needs a multi-lingual dictionary to understand the different dialects spoken in different parts of the country. Here is a sample lexicon of Bonglish (Bengali English), Punjlish, (Punjabi English), Gujlish (Gujarati English) and Idlish (English spoken anywhere where the staple diet is idlis.)

Bonglish

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Baggar-phellow: Portmanteau epithet, generally prefixed with ‘raskail’ as in "Dawood Ibrahim is a raskail baggar-phellow!"

Bridge: A current of air, as in "In Kolkata, a cool bridge blows in the evening."

Breeze: A link over a body of water connecting two points of land. As in "San Francisco is having phamous Golden Gate Breeze, but Kolkata no doubt is having equally phamous Hooghly Breeze."

Bard: A member of the avian species, as in "The kiwi is a bard that cannot phly."

Bird: A poet, as in "Rabindranath Tagore is most phamous bird of Bengal."

Shit: A piece of paper, as in "Please write your good name on this shit."

Sheet: Result of bowel movement, as in "If you are doing too much sheet, go to see your doctor."

Nonsense: Ultimate insult, to which there is no second strike capability, as in "You are a nonsense!"

Red-red eyes: Sign of anger, aggression. As in "Whyfore are you showing me red-red eyes, you raskail baggar-phellow! You nonsense!"

Biskoot: Biscuit. All Bongs, from Rabindranath to Jyotibabu say ‘biskoot’. It is the shibboleth of Bongness. And if don’t believe me, as Amartyada.

Punjlish

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Antieji/Unkailji: Generic terms for all people, including total strangers, who are over 40 years of age.

Birday: Nothing to do with Saleem Ali, ‘birday’ is a birth anniversary. As in "Today we are having birday party for Dimple."

Scotcha: Spirituous beverage, preferred libation of Punjabi males over the age of 14 at birdays and other get-togethers. As in "Cheerya ji! Scotcha-Wotcha ho jai!"

M’ruti: A small automobile much seen on Delhi streets, often sporting rear-window stickers saying "Paploo di gaddi", "Jai Mata di! and "I’m risky after whisky".

Next-door neighbourers: The people living next door to you. As in "The Guptas are my next-door neighbourers. But apart from the fact that Mr Gupta is a deputy branch manager in State Bank of India, Karol Bagh, getting a salary of Rs 30,000 a month, Mrs Gupta is a teacher in Bal Mandir School, Panchkuiya Road, salary Rs 8,000, their two daughters, Dimple and Twinkle, are good at their studies, though Dimple needs private tuition in maths twice a week, they have a cujjin-brother who lives in Toronto and a chacha living in Hounslow, Mrs Gupta’s favourite dish is mattar paneer and Mr Gupta’s favourite sweet is kheer, which he insists on eating though it is not good for his blood sugar which is 135 when it should be 120, and that Mr Gupta wears Pehelwan brand kachhas and Mrs Gupta is size 36B I know practically nothing about them. Dilli is so impersonal, no?"

Backside: Rear of a building. As in signs saying "Enter from backside."

Krakter: Character, as in "She is woman of loose krakter."

Sacherday: The day of the week before Sunday. As in "Sacherday Night Fever."

Loin: Carnivorous animal found in Africa and in Gir in Gujarat. Term of approbation denoting heroic stature, as in "He is a true loin of Punjab!"

Tanshun: Tension, stress. As in "I am having so much tanshun, meri toh death he death ho gai!"

Dipty c’llector: Deputy collector, high ranking official. Often used rhetorically vis-a-vis the person whose car has collided with your car: "Who do you think your father is? Dipty c’llector?"

Pencho: Most frequently used word in Punjabi vocabulary. Misconstrued as a gross epithet by non-Punjabis, "pencho" is actually a cordial form of greeting between males, as in "Oy, pencho! My father is a dipty c’llector! Who’s yours?"

Gujlish

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Bombay thali (Pure Veg): A mystical inscription on public signs, from Seattle to Singapore, which magically causes to materialise around it a horde of Gujjus before anyone can say "Su chhay?"

Snakes: Eatables consumed in between meals. As in "Instead of dinner, we’ll have heavy snakes at tea-time."

Takes: An official impost, such as sales takes, income takes, wealth takes, etc., to all of which the true Gujju is highly allergic and tries assiduously to avoid. As in "I will bribe my income takes officer 50,000 so that I don’t have to pay 25,000 by way of takes. Smart thinking, su?

Fakes: Form of electronic communication, as in "Instead of sending a letter, why don’t you just fakes me?"

Masterbater: Person skilled with a cricket bat. As in "Sachin is a great masterbater!"

Kem: Common form of greeting, particularly between newly weds on their honeymoon. The proper response is "Oh, several times, darling! How about you?"

 Idlish

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Yay: First letter of alphabet. As in "Yay is for yapple."

Booj: Strong spirits. As in "He had lots of booj and got drunk."

Yen: Letter of alphabet. As in "Banana is spelt be-yay-yen-yay-yen-yay."

Yem: Letter of alphabet immediately preceding yen.

Lowly: Slang term for money. As in "A millionaire is someone who’s got lots of lowly."

Idly: Common item of food seen on all Udupi menus, as in "Idly with butter."

Ilay-po Narkaldanga: Interjectory exclamation. An interpolation invented by northerners to illustrate the way southerners allegedly speak, but actually don’t. As in "You really buy all this rubbish written in this article? Ilay-po narkaldanga!"