Support Govt's Push For Good Governance

 

When someone asks the tourists who come to visit Nepal from different parts of the world, "How do you find Nepali people?" All of them answer with a smile, "They are very nice people. They are friendly, simple, innocent and kind. They are number one in hospitality." But what we are seeing these days justifies such qualities in Nepali people?  For some people, such statements are still true but not for others. You may know what I am talking about.

It has not even been two months since the Prime Minister Balendra Shah-led government has been formed. We are all aware that during such a short period of time, this government has done so many good deeds in different sectors of the country. The general people have started to realise its presence at their service. The government is just following the ruling party's, i.e. Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP)'s election manifesto and a 'citizen contract', which was made public in March this year. It has highlighted '100 points of policy change.' Based on this manifesto, the government's target is to complete 100 tasks within 100 days, focusing on good governance, economic growth, anti-corruption, meritocracy and many other such agendas that can lead the nation towards positive transformation.

Unnecessary comments 

What is surprising is that whatever the government is doing to bring change, the opposition parties and their followers are passing negative comments, just for the sake of comments. These comments reached the climax once the government started to demolish the illegal dwellings of landless squatters on riverbanks in Kathmandu nearly a couple of weeks ago. It was obvious to happen sooner or later, so why make too much fuss?  Weren't such structures risking the dwellers' lives during the floods in rainy seasons every year? In addition, they had made the city center ugly as well.

When the tearing down of such unorganised settlements began, people came to know that there were more fake landless squatters than the real ones. They were making a handsome living in disguise. They had created their own empire there, and only these people got aggressive to the governmental action and they were supported by the people from different political parties. The real squatters seem to be happy because they believe the Balen government will take care of them. When the issue of landless squatters was still hot, there came a recommendation of the Chief Justice by the Constitutional Council of Nepal. This incident also aroused a lot of negative remarks. It is okay to ask for clarification if something is not clear or if people are not satisfied with the decision made by the government. But is it right to be personal and attack someone mercilessly?

In both of these cases, i.e., the removal of unauthorised settlements and recommendation of the Chief Justice, the Prime Minister, Balendra Shah, has been attacked illogically. Forget about ignorant people! What hurts more is the person like Sushila Karki also does not want to spare an opportunity to make Balen her target! Many women consider Karki as their model. She has been at the height of her position as the Chief Justice and the first female Prime Minister of Nepal. Doesn't she know what sort of language she is expected to use in public? She unnecessarily dragged Balen's wife into her conversation with a journalist. Though she tried to correct her later, her cruel intention to criticize Balen was clear to the public.

It seems like Balen's enemies are intentionally assassinating his character. They are using all sorts of foul language to defame him. They can criticise his actions but not him as a person; character assassination is a crime. It is the PM's generosity that he is not taking any action against them.

I am sure all those people who are trying hard to prove Balen wrong are not motivated by their patriotic feelings at all; instead, they have their own vested interests to get one or another type of personal gain. If not so, why to point their finger at a person who works day and night to make the country a better place to live? Shouldn't we give him time to materialise his plans? Isn't it too early to judge him? The so-called critics may be jealous and scared of what Balen is doing because his actions can make them dysfunctional by exposing their selfishness.

Win people's heart

I hear the voice of a handful of people who are asking for the PM's resignation. Well, if he resigns, what will be an alternative? Haven't we seen other parties' governance for the last thirty years? Weren't people fed up of their monopoly to spark a Gen Z movement as a reaction? Therefore, it is meaningless to shout for the PM's resignation at the moment. No matter how much they struggle for this, it does not work as the RSP has got people's mandate for a solid five years. More than wasting time to criticise Balen, what is important is that the political parties should clean their damaged image by doing all sorts of good work to win people's heart and reclaim their lost trust first.

Observing Balen's working style, I think that he may be guided by the philosophy of 'deconstructionism.' He literally wants to break down everything that is constructed by the earlier failed and corrupted political systems and reconstruct them in a better way. There is no doubt that if you deconstruct something, it looks chaotic, dirty and ugly. Then, when you start reconstructing the same, it appears to be clearer and more beautiful. Therefore, let's not interfere with the government at least for 100 days. We should wait and watch if it fulfills the promises that it made to the Nepali citizens.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, May 15, 2026 ) 

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Mixed Views On New Academic Session

 This week was a bit different from last week. Until last week, all the schools, parents, and students seemed to be confused, worried, and stressed. In contrast, this week, enthusiasm engulfed the social media platforms. There were notices bombarding regarding new admissions, school opening dates, and advertisements of different schools. Although the government initially announced that the new academic school session in 2083 BS will officially begin on Baishakh 15, with student enrollment and admission, and formal classes will start only from Baishakh 21, almost all of the schools could not wait that long to start the classes.

In previous years, the new academic session would commence in the first week of Baishakh, so the schools were prepared accordingly this year as well. And the governmental announcement of delaying the formal class schedule was surprising and completely unexpected. The time gap from Baishakh 2 to 14 gave a headache, particularly to the parents. So, when they heard their children's school was going to start on the 15th of Baishakh, they felt huge relief.

Views on new academic session 

In the meantime, I talked to several teachers, parents, and students to find out their views on the government's decision to delay the academic session. All of them univocally expressed that they would love the school to begin sooner rather than later, like in previous years. However, their reasons for this were different.

The teachers stated that since this break was unexpected, they could not enjoy it at all. This is mainly because they had already holidayed immediately after the final examination to refresh themselves. So, the further days off were quite boring. They complained that their daily routine was disturbed, they became lazy, and their sleeping time was irregular. When they had school, they would spend time looking for teaching and learning materials on the Internet, but during the vacation period, they just scrolled down the reels and videos for hours and hours. Even though they regretted this later, they could not help themselves from getting away from their mobile phones to fill their free time. 

Some of the teachers grumbled that to kill time, they went to the marketplace and spent a lot of money buying things that they did not need urgently. This year's break reminded them of the uncertain lockdown period during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. The parents had other stories to share. They expected their children to begin the new school session in the first week of Baishakh, but it could not happen. They jokingly added, only they knew how hard it was for them to manage the extra two-week break, handling the children. The main challenge they faced was children's mobile phone addiction; if not the mobile phone, then the television. The parents tried to encourage their children towards reading or other creative activities, but they would snap, "I'll read and do everything when the school opens, not now." The early teenagers' parents were worried about their children's bad company, since these days drug abuse is an acute problem among people. They were scared thinking that their children could be prey of drug abusers or drug dealers if they allowed them to go out of the house. Some parents said that their children would be in safe hands once they started school. The working parents faced the babysitting problem; the spouses needed to take leave from their workplace alternatively. The parents agreed with the teachers on spending money. They complained that more staying home meant more expenditure on outings and entertainment for children.

The children also said that they would prefer going to school over staying home doing nothing but staring at their mobile phones the whole day. In the question, "Why school?" They responded, "We can play with friends at school. We can learn many things from teachers. Our parents will also be happy when we go to school." The older children shared that their parents would always ask them to help with household chores, which they did not like. They also needed to be a babysitter for the younger siblings.

Mental pressure

These views indicate that the unplanned holiday may not be as effective as it should be. Although the government had a good intention behind delaying the new school session for about three weeks, it did not work out perfectly. It seemed like people's mental pressure was much more enormous than saving fuel at this time of crisis. What was lacking on the part of the government was untimely and unclear information. It suddenly announced that formal classes at schools will begin only from Baishakh 21; this created a big "why" among the concerned people. There appeared to be different speculations on an everyday basis, which made the public more worried and impatient. 

Research shows that even one week of school deprivation causes tremendous losses for children. Because of this, their academic, social and emotional well-being will be jeopardised. Other studies point out that if children are out of school for quite a long time, there may increase in physical abuse, sexual abuse, violence or even early pregnancies. Therefore, any decision, especially related to children's education, should be taken more wisely, considering each and every aspect but not abruptly. A quick decision may lead to disasters. After all, school is a safe place for children to learn and grow. This can be a lesson for the government in the future.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, May 1, 2026 ) 

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Information Gap Misleads Parents

 These days, a lot of confusion is in the air in relation to school education in Nepal. Some of them include if there is two-day weekend (Saturday and Sunday), then there will not be sufficient working days to complete the course; now, children up to grade five should not have to take any sort of examination; the government is going to make school education free even in the private schools; the parents, whose children go to the institutional schools,  should not have to pay tuition fees of this Baishakh; the private schools are going to be closed, blah, blah, blah. 

Mainly, social media is responsible for spreading all sorts of fake news and sadly, a majority of people rely on such news; they do not bother to cross-check with the authentic media. And the word of mouth is very strong to influence people. For instance, the other day, some new parents came to our school to inquire about the admission process for this session. At that time, someone just appeared and intervened, "Hey! You don't have to admit your children this time. The government has made admission free. Plus, you don't need to pay tuition fees for the month of Baishakh." As soon as those parents heard this, they left the school without asking for clarity from our side.

Misinterpretation 

How can people misinterpret the information? It is clearly said by the Ministry of Education that before beginning the new session, neither a school can admit students nor can it take any sort of fees. There is nothing new but the government is only emphasising following strictly what is mentioned in the Education Regulations formulated in 2059 B.S. Furthermore, it is also stated that schools cannot take monthly tuition fees for more than 12 months in a year. Doesn't the government know that the staff salary in private schools is managed by the monthly tuition fees? How dare some people spread such baseless news?

For the educated parents, it is not difficult to process all sorts of information and understand the government policies, but unfortunately, many of the parents in our community are uneducated or illiterate and do not have access to the authentic information, so they are affected by rumours the most. Until now the general public strongly believes that their children get better education in institutional schools in comparison to community ones. So, they prefer to send them to such schools even if they do not have high-income sources. They work hard in odd jobs just to be able to afford private education for their children.

There is no doubt that the government is trying to bridge the gap between these two categories of schools and introduce different directives on an everyday basis, which sounds good. This way, students from the community schools would also have access to the same level of quality education as their counterparts from the institutional schools. However, it feels a bit hasty to confuse people and make them doubtful on the implementation side of these directives. 

Currently, there is a kind of vacuum regarding the commencement of studies for this session. The government has made an announcement that the teaching-learning at schools will begin from only the 21st of Baishakh. This has given parents a headache. They are quite worried about not finding ways to engage their children at home. As everybody knows, these days children are more interested in mobile phones rather than in books. For them, school is the only place to be in touch with books and this opportunity has been snatched. Another problem associated with the delayed beginning of the session is with working parents. They find babysitting very challenging. 

Many parents are complaining these days feel like COVID-19 days or even worse. At least, on those days their children would take online classes, but now they are staying at home idly. They think the situation has created unnecessary tension in them and nearly a month is going to be wasted. There is no uniformity in following the governmental directives in all municipalities as well. Some municipalities have issued a notice to start a new session from the first week of Baishakh, some from the second week and some from the third. The situation is getting haphazard. Nobody has understood why to wait until the 21st of Baishakh to start school, as schools, parents and students are all ready and everything is perfect too.

Reform 

Reform in education is a must but the government decisions seem to be abrupt; because of this, there arise many confusions. The transition period for everything should be as smooth as possible but the stakeholders of school education have found this quite harsh. If we take an example from Australia, this point will be much clearer. Realising the adverse effects, the Australian government decided to ban some of the social media platforms for users under 16 years old. For this, a Bill was passed in 2024 and it came into force only in 2025. This indicates that people need a substantial amount of time to shift from one situation to another so that their transition will not be problematic. 

In contrast, the Ministry of Education in Nepal has issued nine directives for immediate implementation. This sounds over-ambitious. There is a popular idiom in English that says 'one step at a time,' meaning you do just a little at a time so that you can break down your complex tasks into manageable and simpler ones to complete them easily. This way, you will maximise chances to achieve your goals. We should not forget that sometimes haste makes waste.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, April 17, 2026 ) 

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On Scrapping Of Primary Level Exams

 The new government under Prime Minister Balendra Shah or Balen has released its 100-point action plan, where different schemes are listed to be completed within 100 days. These actions are related to various fields and one of them is education. Among others, it highlights abolishing the formal examination system from the coming academic session for students in grades 1 to 5. The plan claims this will reduce academic pressure on young learners, which is absolutely true. However, there are a lot of reservations.

While I was reading the news, I started to reflect on my PhD days. When I first took my son to get admission in a primary school in Victoria, Australia, in 2008, he was in grade four. The first thing I noticed was that there were no textbooks at all, and secondly, they would not give formal examinations to primary level students. This kind of education system made me worried, as these two were the key elements of our education system. The other parents who had newly arrived in Australia, particularly from Asian countries, also shared the same feeling. 

Examination system

These parental worries led me to conduct my PhD research on how literacy teaching and learning happen in primary schools in Victoria, Australia. This research drew a lot of invaluable information related to continuous learning and assessment. There is no doubt that the traditional examination system encourages students' rote learning and it does not seem to be suitable in today's world. Unfortunately, almost all of the Nepali parents and teachers have come from a background of the traditional education system, which considers a formal examination as the most effective way to assess learning outcomes.

The role of teachers is very important in implementing the things suggested by policymakers. For this, they must be qualified enough, well-trained and well-informed. The major questions here are: Are the teachers who teach in grades 1 to 5 capable of using the alternative evaluation system confidently? Do they have access to the resource materials that they need? Have they received enough training for this? Is continuous guidance available to them?  The other chief stakeholder of education is parents. So, how will they take the governmental decision to abolish all sorts of internal examinations? Were they consulted before making the decision? Will they accept this normally? Such questions automatically arise in someone's mind when it comes to trying something new.

Well, in principle, it is said that the formal examinations have already been abolished in grades 1 to 3. But what is in practice? Are teachers using the alternative techniques of evaluation in reality? Is there any strong follow-up mechanism? I do not think schools are seriously following the newly introduced system of no formal examinations, but continuous evaluation. In documentation, everything looks fine but on the ground level, the same traditional practice is being continued in most of the contexts. The most challenging part of abolishing internal examinations is its implementation throughout the country. 

In urban areas, it may be possible if the schools try hard but in rural areas where students do not even have proper school buildings, classrooms or furniture, this sounds like a far cry. In such areas, the only resource material teachers have is a textbook and their ultimate evaluation method is formal examinations. I agree that primary level students do not need formal examinations, as they do not measure their real capacities. During this time, they are curious to learn many things. So, they must be exposed to different subject areas, which can make their learning interesting and enjoyable. In such a learning environment, gradually, teachers can identify students' favourite subject areas, their talents or their inclinations. This helps teachers to encourage students to hone their strengths.

Even if this is the case, in the context of Nepal, introducing the new evaluation system abruptly may not achieve the expected results. There are several issues to address before implementing something new in classrooms. First of all, there must be an extensive research study including all the stakeholders, such as teachers, parents, students, curriculum designers or textbook writers and it must cover participants from all geographical regions. Their views guide the government to make wise decisions. Secondly, the concerned teachers must be trained in alternative ways of assessment and they must be provided with continuous guidance and support. 

Sufficient resources 

The schools must have sufficient resource materials; only having a textbook as their instructional material, teachers cannot implement an alternative evaluation system in their class. Among all, the most important factor is a regular and strong follow-up mechanism. The usual practice of teacher training in Nepal has seemed to be merely a formality so far. Teachers participate in such training programmes only for a salary increment, but not to bring positive changes in their teaching methods. They may be reluctant to use whatever they have learned due to the lack of follow-up. If they had been followed up regularly the situation of community schools would have improved a lot. 

It is a natural phenomenon to resist something new in the beginning but if you cannot get away from it, you gradually start to accept it. If teachers realise that they will be going to be observed once they complete their training and go back to their classroom, they will obviously use the knowledge, skills or strategies that they have gained. Otherwise, they follow the same traditional method, which they find easy and comfortable. If everything works perfectly, then the abolition of formal paper-and-pencil tests in grades 1 to 5 sounds great. This gives students more room for enjoyable and exploratory learning.  

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, April 3, 2026 ) 

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Bring Strict Law Against Rapists

 Last time I raised an issue of the Epstein files, which disclosed how the world leaders may also have been involved in sex trafficking. However, this is yet to be proved. The Epstein case indicates that girls or women are vulnerable everywhere around the world. And Nepal is not an exception. For the last couple of weeks, the Nepali media has been continuously publishing news reports about Inisha BK, who was a victim of gang rape and murder. There are different protests being organized asking for justice. 

Inisha was just a 16-year-old girl who aspired to be a doctor but unfortunately, her dream was shattered by some insensitive and foolish boys who were accused of being rapists and murderers. Not only this, her parents had lost their son a decade ago and now their only child had also gone because of someone's brutality. Inisha is only an example; there are several cases of rape every day in Nepal. Since 2018, Nirmala Panta's parents have been waiting for justice for their daughter, who was raped and murdered like Inisha. 

Rising rape cases 

The available data shows that on average, seven women and girls are being raped daily in the country. Annually, the rape cases have increased by roughly 20 per cent. These are only reported cases; in most of the situations, victims cannot raise their voice because of different social or familial reasons.  A UNICEF report states that more than 370 million girls and women or one in eight, experienced rape or sexual assault before the age of 18. Females are struggling worldwide for their safety. 

Even if rape is not socially acceptable at any cost, why men are prone to this unacceptable act? There are several research studies conducted to find the answer of this question. Their findings suggest that primarily it is a production of patriarchal society where men feel proud to execute violence, power and control over women rather than just satisfying their sexual desire. Other reasons include psychological factors, substance abuse, racism and poverty.

Some people may think that it is only a problem in some poor Asian or African countries but in the developed countries such as France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, New Zealand or America, the rape cases are equally reported. In fact, it is a worldwide issue. What is surprising to learn is that countries with stronger legal protections often have higher reported rape figures.

Different countries across the world have strong laws against sexual assault to make their societies a safer place, particularly for women. For instance, a rapist in India has a punishment of life imprisonment to death sentence, for a similar case, a death sentence is applied in Pakistan as well, and China has a death sentence or castration. In Saudi Arabia, the punishment for rape is a public beheading. In North Korea, the rapists get a death sentence by firing squad. Similarly, they are shot in the head in Afghanistan. 

Other countries where there is a death penalty for rapists are Egypt and Iran. The USA itself has life imprisonment for such criminals. When it comes to Nepal, there is only imprisonment, which ranges from 10 to 25 years according to the age of the victims and the nature of rape, such as gang rape, marital rape or incestual rape. This sort of punishment does not seem to be as strong as in other countries mentioned here.  Although there is a high demand for the death penalty by lawmakers and the general public, it has not been passed into law yet. 

In the context of Nepal, some strategies can be used that may help to decrease rape cases. First of all, it is very important to empower girls. They must not feel inferior to boys. When they sense some kind of filthy intention of boys, they must stop them then and there. There is a tendency to blame victims, e.g., questioning their clothing or objecting to their openness, which the girls must realise is not true. If there is some kind of physical or verbal defense training, it will be very helpful. 

Most of all, sex education is very important in our schools. The students must receive age-appropriate content related to human sexuality. If they are well informed regarding their body, they may not want to engage in unhealthy experimentation with sex. Coming back to Inisha's case, one of the boys is said to be her boyfriend; can a boyfriend be so ruthless? Whatever statement he gave to the police is not convincing and what is more important is that his statement and Inisha's postmortem report do not match. 

Public skepticism 

Currently, there has been a news story that one of the four alleged boys' fathers said that if his son is found guilty, he can be punished by hanging and he will not have any objection to this. As a father, he has made a big statement but the public seems to be quite skeptical about whether he is telling the truth. The case is still under investigation. 

I truly hope Inisha BK's case should not be pending like Nirmala Panta's or dismissed like many others'. She must get justice sooner rather than later. Every girl has a right to feel safe. Now we are on the verge of forming the new government that must review the law related to the punishment system for rapists. At least life imprisonment needs to be introduced, if not the death penalty. If there is a strong punishment system, a rapist will always think twice before committing a crime.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, March 20, 2026 ) 

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Women Continue To Face Sexual Abuse

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights. It was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly  in 1948. The UDHR defines human rights as universal, inalienable, and inherent entitlements belonging to every person, regardless of status, based on the principle that all people are born free and equal in dignity.  However, there is a big question: 'Even though these rights are protected by international law, are they implemented in reality?'

Recently, a news story related to the Epstein files was published by the international media, which made people's eyes go wide open. The release of these files triggers a public debate globally. When I read about Jeffrey Epstein, I got furious. How can people be so cruel to children? In fact, he has been on news since 2005 when his criminal activities were exposed. That year, the Florida police started investigating him when the parents of a 14-year-old girl reported that she had been molested at the millionaire's home in Palm Beach. Epstein turned to be a wealthy convicted sex offender. 

Sex trafficking 

He was arrested in 2019 on federal charges of sex trafficking of minors. It is said that the same year, he died by suicide in jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and conspiracy charges. This year the US Department of Justice has published more than three million additional pages related to the Epstein files. What is surprising in this document is that many high-profile world people are listed there who seemed to be somehow connected to Jeffrey Epstein. These people include Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Sarah Ferguson, Ehud Barak, Donald Trump, Bill Clinton and many others. 

Appearing in the documents, however, does not mean that there is any implication of wrongdoing. Still, these people may be under surveillance until the investigation is complete. We all know that America is one of the most democratic countries in the world. In such a country, children are also not safe and what can we expect in places like ours? Human trafficking is the biggest problem in Nepal as well, where women and girls are the most vulnerable. Anuradha Koirala, a social activist and the founder of Maiti Nepal, has been fighting against this issue for years and the problem remains the same. Who doesn't know about a 13-year old girl, Nirmala Panta? She was found raped and murdered in 2018. Sadly, justice for her has not been delivered yet.

The other day, I heard a terrible story of a woman from Arghakhachi who was extremely tortured physically and mentally by her own husband. She was kept hostage in a house by him. She was sexually abused every day, because of which her vagina was torn up. She could not hold either her urine or stool, as both of them came out from the same organ. To terrorise her, the husband used to put a knife to her chest while sleeping. The couple had two children and the father had threatened them not to tell anything to anyone; if they did, he would kill their mother and them as well. So, the children were terrified. 

Luckily, the son was able to take a photograph of her mother with a knife on her chest and show it to the local social activists. Eventually, she was rescued by them after living a hellish life for nearly one and a half years. Let's take another case of Shobha Pathak, who has a lot of allegations against a CPN-UML leader, Mahesh Basnet. She claims that she got married to Basnet but he denied the fact and abandoned her. She shouts now and then that she has not got justice. She even blames the KP Sharma Oli-led government for covering Basnet's truth. She is still fighting her battle in the court. 

These are only a few examples. Every day, there are news stories published which are related to child marriage, child abuse, forced marriage, dowry, rape, domestic violence, murder, sexual harassment or gender discrimination. In most of the cases, females are the victims. We talk about Women's rights or children's rights but these rights may not be experienced by all of the concerned people. A UN report shows that around 50,000 women and girls worldwide were killed in 2024, most by family members. The same report says that a French woman, Gisele Pelicot, was drugged by her husband and raped by dozens of men while she was unconscious for over nine years. 

Domination 

Whether it is in Nepal or elsewhere in the world, it is seen that more powerful people dominate the less powerful ones. Historically, this power has been given to men based on patriarchal norms. The label attached to women as the 'weaker sex' seems to be persistent at some level. This may be the reason why some men mistreat women and girl children. They should not forget that everybody has equal rights in all spheres of life. 

Human civilization has come this far but the savagery of the ancient society follows in one or another form. Even if this is the case, we should not stop raising our voice continuously against each and every sort of discrimination until we are heard and appropriate action is taken. At the same time, we should be watchful that some people always want to silence our voice to prove their superiority or power. The fight for human rights goes on and on.

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, March 6, 2026 ) 

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Are We Enjoying Democracy?

 

Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, said that democracy is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people. If we explore the origin of the word 'democracy', we find that it has been derived from the Greek word 'demokratia' where 'demos' stands for 'the people' and 'kratia' for 'power' or 'rule'. 

So, in very simple terms, democracy can be defined as a system of government that is decided by the people via election. They vote for representatives and send them to parliament, which is a country's legislative or law-making body. The parliament develops different systems to run the country smoothly. If we see the history of democracy, it goes back to the fifth century BC. During that time, it was first introduced in Athens by Cleisthenes of Athens, who is considered the father of democracy. 

History 

Since then, there has been the practice of democracy in the world in different forms. Nepal has its own history of democracy. For the first time, with the help of political leaders, such as B. P. Koirala, Ganesh Man Singh, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, and many others, the late king Tribhuvan Bir Bikram Shah took an initiative to establish democracy in Nepal on the 7th of Falgun, 2007 BS or 1951 AD. This step was taken to topple the 104-year-long autocracy of the Rana regime.  So, this year, we, the Nepali people, are celebrating the 75th democracy day. 

During these years, Nepal has gone through different democratic movements, and people have experienced a lot of ups and downs. The Nepali Congress-led government ruled the country for about a decade. Unfortunately, this government was removed by the late King Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah in 1960 AD to introduce the Panchayati system, which he claimed was a suitable system for the nation. But people started to feel that this system of monarchism pushed democracy back. 

There are different indicators of democracy. Some of them include sovereignty, fundamental human rights, equality, and individual freedom, open access to information, freedom of speech, free press, people's participation in politics, multi-party system, free election, independent judiciary, transparent government, decentralisation, and others. Since the Nepali people were deprived of all these facilities, they were not happy with the Panchayati system.

As a result of their dissatisfaction, there was a joint civil resistance in 1990 AD. It was led by the United Left Front, which turned out to be the CPN UML and Nepali Congress. After a long struggle, eventually they were successful in overthrowing the Panchayati system and establishing a constitutional monarchy, which seemed to be a form of democracy. 

Although the government system was changed and people got limited access to democracy through a multi-party system, they were not fully satisfied. This was reflected in the Maoist rebellion in 1996 AD, and led to an armed civil war. Once again, democracy was at stake in Nepal. The people's war lasted for a decade, and it resulted in thousands of deaths and widespread destabilisation, particularly in the countryside. 

In the meantime, the Royal Palace Massacre occurred, in which King Birendra and much of the royal family were killed. Following this tragedy, King Gyanendra ascended to the throne. He dissolved the government and assumed absolute power in 2005, which invited much public criticism and opposition from political parties. This led to yet another movement in 2006 AD. It forced the king to step down. Subsequently, Parliament was reinstated, and the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Accord with the Maoists formally ended the decade-long civil war.

Although democracy was restored this way, it had not been implemented as people had expected it to be. Three major parties emerged - Nepali Congress, CPN UML, and Maoist - to rule the nation. They took charge of the country turn by turn. Gradually, corruption, nepotism, anarchism, inequality, unemployment, brain-drain, and what not started to foster. When all this reached a climax, the Gen Z revolution occurred in 2025. We all know the rest.

This snapshot of the political history of Nepal shows that more than seventy years have been employed and spent on democracy. It seems like the movement started against the autocracy of the Rana dynasty has not fully achieved its goals yet. Dr. Tara Nath Ghimire had conducted a research study on 'Democratic movements and challenges in Nepal' and found several reasons for the failure of democracy in Nepal. First of all, the political parties were unable to teach people that the country is bigger than the party. 

Greed for position and power

The Nepali citizens could not be emotionally organised due to the leaders' greed for position and power. Secondly, the political leaders have lost respect for morality. The rights and duties of citizens are not delineated. The general people are also prone to immorality due to the unethical actions of political leaders. Another reason Mr. Ghimire points out is that the media also has an important role in shaping democracy, but unfortunately, most of them are run by political parties, and this leads to bias.

Once again, Nepali people are at a threshold of general elections to elect the members of the House of Representatives. I hope this time people vote for the right candidates who understand the real meaning of democracy and allow all the citizens to enjoy the system freely. The elected political leaders should keep in mind that democracy is the government of the people, by the people, and for the people. It, in fact, protects people's power, not the political leaders'.  Happy Democracy Day to all who are in Nepal and abroad.    

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, February 20, 2026 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]  

Collective Fight Ends Gender Inequality

 

One of my college students asked me, out of the blue, 'Ma'am, does patriarchy still exist in Nepal?' I thought she was simply curious about the issue, so I responded in a normal tone, 'Yes, of course! You'll find a lot of examples of this if you observe our society closely.' Then she opened up about how she was discriminated against by her employers in her workplace, only based on her gender. Her story made me think about the issues of gender balance or gender equity. Luckily, she is a strong-headed girl, so she fought for her rights and raised her voice high to teach a lesson to those handful of biased people. Unfortunately, not all Nepali women may not have the guts like my student to stand for themselves or speak up when they experience gender differences.

We find gender equity only on paper but in reality, there is still a practice of male chauvinism in most of the cases in Nepal.  Since historically, culturally and socially, Nepal has been a patriarchal society, it seems to be very hard to maintain gender balance. Apart from in some exceptional situations, people have a deep-rooted belief system that men are superior to women in every sphere of life, and this belief will not go away easily. Some examples of discrimination between girls and boys include chhaupadi, dowry system, rape, property rights, domestic roles, gender-based violence, citizenship hurdles, limited political representation, limited economic participation, workplace harassment and many more. 

Constructed differences 

Although the law has protected women's rights, the implementation side has not been working effectively. A research study, conducted by Pranab Dahal, Sunil Kumar Joshi and Katarina Swahnberg in 2022, also confirms gender inequality in Nepal. Their findings suggest that the subjugation of women occurs due to practices based on gender differences, constricted life opportunities, and internalisation of constructed differences among women. They have developed a concept of power-play, which is identified as a cause and consequence of women's subordination and violence. This means that the ultimate power needed to run the Nepali society is still in the hands of men. 

Women have been struggling to share that power for a long time; for this, they have even sacrificed their lives. Yogmaya Neupane (1867 - 1941 AD) is a great example who is considered Nepal's first revolutionary woman. Yogmaya was a spiritual leader and social reformer who ended her life along with 68 of her followers in protest against the social conditions of her time by jumping into the wild floods of the river Arun. Her protest was directed against the social practices that had been highly divided along gender and caste hierarchies. 

Nepali women, at different times, have pushed for changes around them, winning small battles, one at a time but they have not succeeded yet. Currently, there are many women, such as Anuradha Koirala, Bandana Rana, Uma Devi Badi, Durga Sob and others who are working tirelessly in the field of gender equality.

While I was reading an essay by Bonnie Smith-Yackel, I just thought about women in our society. In her narrative essay, 'My Mother Never Worked,' Bonnie, an American author, has depicted her homemaker mother's picture very beautifully. The writer wants to make her readers aware of how a society devalues unpaid household chores and farm work. Her mother, who devoted all her life to taking care of the house, raising her children and doing difficult farm work, was sadly deprived of Social Security benefits. According to federal law, only those workers are entitled to such benefits who have a paid job. 

Although the author tries her best to convince the Social Security officer by saying that her mother worked harder throughout her life than anybody else, so she must have got death benefit, the officer does not budge. Instead, she responds, 'Well, that's right. Your mother didn't work, you know.' This response breaks a reader's heart. In the same vein, another American writer, Sandra Cisneros, has written an essay 'Only Daughter'. In this essay, she has shown how difficult it is to be a daughter in a Mexican family where there are already six sons. Her brothers did not want to play with her in public because she was a girl, so Sandra was isolated throughout her childhood. 

Her father used to believe that she was going to be someone's wife. She recalls how h e thought college was good for girls to find a husband but not to gain knowledge or education. However, Sandra was determined to make her father understand that his daughter is a writer; she worked hard to make him proud but he did not seem to value her. She writes, '...Everything I have ever written has been for him, to win his approval even though I know my father cannot read English words.'

Women's struggles 

I am using these essays to make a point that not only Nepali women are struggling to get recognised but women around the world are also facing the same problem. There are different movements in world history to secure women's rights or gender equality. For instance, the Women's Suffrage Movement (also known as the first-wave feminist movement), second-wave feminism, third-wave and networked feminism. The UN is also working in the same direction.

An Asian Development Bank report highlights that Nepal has taken progressive steps toward greater gender equality throughout the past five decades of planned development. Important legal amendments have been made to strengthen women’s rights in key areas such as citizenship, inheritance, and anti-trafficking. Yet, there is gender-based discrimination in all walks of life. So, we must fight against this problem collectively. Thanks to my student who stood up for herself and fought against gender-based discrimination at her workplace. We need more girls like her who are aware of their rights and capable of taking a stand whenever situations call for. 

(Published in an English Daily The Rising Nepal on Friday, January 9, 2026 ) 

[The pictures on this blog are posted here with permission from their owners or have been gathered from various sources on the Internet. If you are the copyright-holder to any of the photographs herein do not hesitate to contact me. They will be swiftly removed if desired so.]