• FACE-TO-FACE
KATHMANDU,DECEMBER 14
Nepali Congress leader and former deputy prime minister and home minister Bimalendra Nidhi needs no introduction. Nidhi, the former vice-president of NC, who hails from Dhanusha district, has won parliamentary seat under the proportional representation system.
He is unwavering in his commitment to democracy and never compromises on the ideals of democracy. On national issues and party affairs, Nidhi always speaks his mind without fearing detractors.
Ram Kumar Kamat of The Himalayan Times had a tete-a-tete with Nidhi on contemporary politics. Nidhi says people should not worry too much about hung Parliament as Nepal's political parties have developed a culture of collaboration despite ideological differences. Excerpts:
The November 20 parliamentary and provincial elections produced a hung Parliament and hung assemblies. Should we worry about political instability again?
We have adopted two kinds of election system namely the firstpast-the-post system and proportional representation system.
Those who say hung Parliament and assemblies cannot give political instability have some logic in the argument. But we must not worry much about political instability because in recent years we have offered some examples of collaboration among political parties despite their ideological differences, conflict between parties and political dissension. This is a very good thing compared to other countries of the region.
Why did a senior leader of the NC like you choose to be a candidate for proportionalrepresentation system and not a first-past-the-post candidate?
I was a candidate under the FPTP election in the 2017 parliamentary elections, but I lost. I don't want to discuss my past electoral loss, nor do I want to make public the reasons for my defeat in the 2017 election. I contested for party presidency during the 14th National Convention of the Nepali Congress, but I lost. I did not get the votes I expected from Madhes districts. Therefore, I decided to contest under PR election system.
People still do not fully understand the positive aspects of PR election system. There is misconception among the public that if somebody contests under the PR system, he/ she is not contesting election in the real sense. I chose to be a candidate under PR system to reinforce the belief that PR election is also a contest and it is okay to be a candidate under the PR system.
Who will be the NC's parliamentary party leader at a time when a youth leader like Gagan Kumar Thapa is in a bid to become the PP leader?
As far as I know, party President and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will be the next PP leader.
Although all party lawmakers have the right to contest election for parliamentary party leader, it would be good if Gagan Thapa decides to support Deuba because the current political situation and the need to build a good coalition requires Deuba to become the PP leader.
How confident are you that the current coalition will remain intact till the formation of the new government?
I am confident that this coalition will remain intact and some new parties such as Janamat Party, Nagarik Unmukti Party and independent members of the House of Representatives will also join the coalition.
Will the division of key postssuch as the post of prime minister, president, speaker, deputy speaker, and chief ministers prove to be problematic?
I do not think division of some key posts will break the alliance.
We have managed such issues satisfactorily and I hope we will be able to do so again. But we have not discussed the division of key posts yet.
But many people fear that competing claims on key posts may pose challenge to the current coalition. Do you think Nepal can learn from Indian coalition politics where parties have successfully collaborated for decades? In Nepal we often see leaders showing extreme greed to join and lead the government. This tendency poses challenge to coalition politics.
Parties should learn to collaborate and work together when no single party wins majority in the Parliament and Province Assemblies.
CPN-MC says they voted for NC candidates, but in some places NC voters did not vote for CPN-MC candidates.
We knew such a problem could arise in some places. Our social structure is responsible for that.
Communist cadres believe in their central committee's centrality, whereas NC party structures are built on democratic values and norms. All NC votes do not get transferred merely on the basis of party decisions. Transfer of votes on the basis of a party's decision is not a good sign. In the US and Europe sometimes, voters change their mind in two or three years and we see voters shift their preference from one party to another.
How do you look at the rise of some new forces such as the Rastriya Swatantra Party and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party that oppose the current model of federalism?
Rise of these new forces shouldnot be a matter of worry. In almost all elections, we see rise of some new force. We have some people who favour monarchy and some who oppose federalism. Communist parties do not accept federalism.
It is not part of their political ideology. Despite all contradictions, we have adopted federal republican system on the basis of which the government continues to function. It is a matter of research for scholars why all professionals get attracted to politics.
Politics should be for professional politicians, but we see all professionals trying to jump into politics.
Journalists, artists and civil society members should remain in their profession and work successfully in their profession, but in our country, we see all kinds of professionals getting attracted to politics.
What is your view on the ordinance that the government has sent to the president proposing to withdraw cases filed against political cadres and leaders, including Resham Chaudhary?
People may debate on the content and timing of the ordinance.
The main thing here is that Resham Chaudhary, who was involved in movement for Tharu rights was put in jail on the basis of the court's verdicts and we have heard comments on the case. Parties had agreed in the past as well to withdraw the case filed against Resham Chaudhary, but that agreement was not implemented. After that Resham won election from his home constituency of Kailali district.
This time again the party led by Resham Chaudhary's wife has won three House of Representatives seats in Kailali district. We should take into account that people's mandate is bigger than the court's mandate.
When I was the home minister, I wanted to release him from prison but I could not succeed because of legal hurdles. Now, the government has sent the ordinance to the president. The objective of the ordinance is to facilitate the peace process in the country. We have not fully addressed the issues of conflict yet. The government has a duty to address such issues. The government has also the duty to address issues that could give rise to violent politics in the future. If we take all these things into account, I think the government's decision to bring this ordnance is right. The president should issue the ordinance and Resham Chaudhary should be released from jail.
Voters seem to be frustrated with traditional forces.
What do you think the next government should do to satisfy voters?
The new government must focus on ways to accelerate overall development of the country. Creating jobs and prioritising reforms in education and agriculture should be given top priority.
Rapid industrialisation will help create jobs. The government should also focus on ensuring access of all to education and upgrade the quality of education. Reform in the education sector is vital for overall development of the country.
A version of this article appears in the print on December 15, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
