Will King summon Round Table Conference?

The fresh unfortunate incident in Okhaldhunga wherein some policemen sacrificed their precious lives during a fierce encounter with the Maoists insurgents and the fresh news emanating from the Maoists quarters revealing that they have declared the formation of a "parallel" sort of government in Rolpa district bespeaks of so many things happening in this country. More so these two separate incidents also firstly speak of the inadequate deployment of the police personnel in the mountainous terrain to fight back with the rebellions and , secondly, the insurgents apparently have taken full advantage of the weaknesses of a lame-duck sort of government at the center which is fighting tooth and nail with its opposition, both within and without, to save its mere existence. Indeed, any sensible person under the sun could draw this corollary from the recent successes achieved of late by the insurgents, which definitely go contrary to the prevailing constitution.

Most unfortunately, the fact is that at the moment this nation possesses distinctly and very clearly the existence of two separate governments: one run by crumbling Koirala government and secondly the government under explicit control of the two top hats of the Maoists insurgents namely Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai. By government’s own admission which is backed by responsible researchers that a third of the country’s territory were at the moment in the control of the Maoists wherein they have formed their provisional governments. The fact is also that the insurgents now
declare the formations of such governments in broad daylight and conduct their assemblage in the districts caring little of the fear of being attacked by the state police. What does this mean? This means clearly that since the government at the center has become pretty weak and hence they have concluded that whatever actions they take or whatever stance they acquire would go unattended by the state. This also means that due to the crisis at the center and the government being involved in devising suitable strategies for its mere survival, the Maoists, in the meantime, found golden opportunities to gather strength that now allows them that is the insurgents to hint the state that they were very much in the peripheries of the Capital district and should they wish could pose a bigger security threat to the Koirala government any time. This fact got reflected only recently when the insurgents openly arranged a mass meeting in the vicinity of the Capital district and have been exhibiting their presence in and around the valley by exploding gelatins at places of their choice.

The crux of the matter is that the Maoists have already exhibited their superiority over the state security machine. In the process, several policemen and the Maoists have sacrificed their precious lives. But how long this killing spree will continue? Is there any role of the constitutional monarch at a time when the government dilly-dallies the "dialogue process" with the insurgents? The monarch is the monarch of the both: of those being killed in the fierce encounters. The persons being killed continue to be King Birendra’s subjects turned citizens. It is time that the constitutional monarch thinks over this imbroglio that has already taken a frightening dimension in the country.

No sensible person on earth, more so in Nepal, would differ with His Majesty the King if He summons the government and the leaders of all the political forces of the country, including the leaders from the insurgents’ quarters, and arranges a "round-table conference" in order to arrive at an amicable solution to the imbroglio that has been on since six years or so. The said round table conference will also set a precedent in Nepal and could be a meeting point of all the leaders with divergent political affiliations to tackle a matter that has a bearing on the body politic as and when such a situation grips the nation. The constitutional monarch can act like a judge during such conferences whose verdict should be binding to all and sundry if the conference fails to give one. This would also bring the monarch closer to those who have been at the helm of affairs of the state and provide an opportunity to both to understand each other better. A close relation between the two sectors, the monarchy and the managers of the system in the government and the opposition, will by all means go in favor of the people. It is time that the King acts and that too at the earliest. That’s all.

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