Nepal king's Hindu followers to start save monarchy campaign

Malaysia Sun (IANS) Friday 2nd March, 2007

Already battered by protests by ethnic groups in the south, indigenous communities in the east and west, and victims of Maoists in the capital, Nepal is now bracing for more trouble with a new group fighting for revival of the monarchy.

From Monday, a Hindu organisation loyal to King Gyanendra will start sit-in protests in the capital to pressure the government into reviving the clause in the old constitution that officially declared Nepal as a Hindu kingdom.

The World Hindu Federation (WHF), a controversial organisation that had supported the king's coup in 2005 and enjoyed state largess during the king's direct rule, said it would start the protests asking the government to declare Nepal a Hindu state.

After the fall of the 15-month royal regime in April, Nepal's newly restored parliament declared the world's only Hindu kingdom to be a secular state.

However, the WHF has been opposing the transformation due to socio-religious as well as political reasons.

Headed by a former army general, Bharat Keshar Simha, the WHF last month organised a rally of sadhus, including the legendary Naga sadhus from India, known for wearing only a loincloth through out the year.

Initially, there were fears that the rally would snowball into violence, causing a law and order problem in the capital.

However, the protest was a very tame one after India's Hindu organisations distanced themselves from Simha and the WHF.

Simha, who had once enjoyed close links with India's BJP, VHP and RSS, began to be cold-shouldered by them since late last year when India's saffron brigade felt King Gyanendra had done nothing to promote the Hindu cause during his direct rule.

Besides the WHF, a lone political party is also campaigning to save Nepal's 238-year monarchy that faces abolition.

A splinter group, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (Nepal), once headed by royalist ministers, began the campaign more than a month ago but so far, has met with little success.

The campaigns come as Nepal's government readies to hold an election by June, when voters will choose between monarchy and a republic.

Side by side with royalists' attempts to save the crown, the Maoists, who began an armed uprising over a decade ago to abolish monarchy, are trying to pressure the government into declaring Nepal a republic before the election.