Two ghastly incidents that jolted Nepal

Some years back, I recall, a competent Police officer had remarked to a tabloid that his experience said the cases of rape and the likes suddenly swing in summer season and more so when the nation embraces rainy season. What is the internal "secrecy" in his findings that I do not know, yet what could be fairly said of him is that more or less he is talking sense.

Two horrible incidents of different nature have occurred in Kathmandu within a week. The two stories though have no connections with each other or whatsoever, however, both will perhaps jolt a responsible Nepali from within. Though such, I’d prefer it to call calamities, possess no meaning to the powers-that-be and the men manning the system, yet for lay men and sensible citizens, it is perhaps some thing that needed collective thinking on how such calamities could be totally controlled for the good of the society first and later to the nation.

The first incident relates to the continued "rape" of a minor of grade 2, to be more specific nine year old school girl by none less than her own principal. The girl had to undergo this traumatic-ordeal for all along nine months in the hostel where her relatives had kept her. The principal lured her first time by offering sweets and succeeded in raping the minor. The process continued and the girl could not disclose this horror meted out to her by his own father-like principal neither to her parents nor to her class friends for fear of being "stabbed" by the criminal. What is shocking of it all is that the principal of this educational institution is married and has two children. Further what has been given to understand that the girl was raped as and when the spouse of the principal remained absent from the house.

Thanks the Almighty, the poor girl whose "hymen" was found totally tattered upon examination, came to see her parents during holidays recently and collected the courage to flatly told her guardians that she would prefer to commit a hara-kiri but would not go to the school ever. Consider the mental agony of this minor. What penal actions this school-head warrants, I leave it up to the readers and the law enforcement agencies in Nepal. Shamefully, he denies all these charges. May be a relative of some Nepali politician or else how he could dare to refute?

The other story is related with the sudden "enlargement" in the perks and facilities of the nation’s prime minister, ministers and understandably of the law makers. It is this conglomerate which has been entrusted to change the fate of the nation-most surprisingly. Albeit, they have already changed their fates. The "minor" increment, brought into effect by the Koirala cabinet a day prior the Lower House was prorogued in their salaries came at a time when the nation’s politics is in a complete mess due to the internecine feud in the ruling party; the number of poverty stricken people is on an constant increase; the land slide at Krishna Bhir, close to Mugling, has paralyzed the whole valley since two weeks which has contributed to the swelling of the prices of the consumer items; the merciless killing of Nepal’s noted musician Pravin Gurung by Paras Shah-the son of HRH Prince Gyanendra- and the total leniency exhibited by the government in initiating actions against junior Shah and many more such events that had demanded solutions from the State have all gone to the dogs. Although, the big shots of the nation managed some tangible monetary gains from the state and the cabinet willingly satisfied their "unending lust" for money because in doing so the cabinet members too contributed to add hefty amounts in their already swollen purse.

Except for a few "sponsored" papers, for the rest of the Nepali media, the 18th session of the House was a total failure. The gain if any went in favor of the ministers and the lawmakers. Interestingly, on this count, there was no dissent in the house. Analysts have said that Nepali ministers and the lawmakers become one when it comes to the increment in their facilities and secondly they exhibit their absolute solidarity when some one of the sort of Mohan Niraula goes on a rampage and challenges their anti-social behaviors of the men manning the system vociferously. Perhaps they feel threatened from within that if the present system goes to the dogs what would happen to their future? A permanent threat in the minds. To recall, the former Panchayati workers too had this problem when their preferred system collapsed.

No solidarity is seen for bringing the prices down; no togetherness in arresting the menace of corruption; no unity in the preservation of national interests; no cohesion in enhancing the prestige of the nation abroad; no oneness in framing a common and genuine national interests of the sort what the Indians have in their foreign policy front; no common vision in solving the issues confronting the poverty stricken people of the nation and what not what not.

Look the photograph attached to this story. The picture clearly shows the total belonging of this family. Look the thatched hut having huge ventilation on top, two earthenware, and two utensils, one cap and that is all. Now compare this family’s total belonging with any of today’s ministers or even those ministers, both in the congress and communists camp, who one way or the other enjoyed ministerial posts earlier. I would not give you the names of the personalities who have ate up the national economic stamina because if you are a responsible and nonpartisan citizen you have the knowledge as to whom had been what and that too not in the distant past. Glaring example of unequal distribution of the fruits of development if any. Even a senile person can question why the project funding do not reach to these huts? After all where does the colossal amount that Nepal receives annually go in fact? Who eats it up? The man and the family seen in the picture or his community members? Certainly not. His crime is that he is penniless and unfortunately has taken birth in the country run all time by fanatics. And corrupt ones. Or else why the lot of these innocent ones haven’t changed despite the tall and eloquent speeches being made day in, day out. The belonging of an average Nepali family outside Kathmandu valley is perhaps the same what this particular family possesses. A hungry bowl for long will perhaps opt for becoming Maoists. Perhaps it is these men in abject poverty that has added to the numerical strength of the Maoists insurgency.

Thanks ye thee gentleman! For your Himalayan patience for watching the "development bird" to come to your doorsteps.

Hoping against hope surely.

-The picture shown here has been used from ADB’s new calendar. Thanks ADB-Chief editor.

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