It would be better to negotiate with the Madhesi parties soon. The government should not delay dialogue in search of genuine demands for it is difficult to decide which demands are genuine and for whom

It has to be accepted that the more delay there is in having serious negotiation with the Madhesi agitators, the more complex and violent the Madhesi agitation will be. The government’s option for going harsh in dealing with them with force killing four persons and wounding several others in Saptari, in all probability, may push dialogue with the agitators further away. The killing of a boy and wounding of a girl on the top of their house, who were in no way related to the agitation, prove the wrong decision of the government. Against the common expectation that the meeting between the high level political committee led by UCPN-Maoist chief PK Dahal including the former PM and senior leader of CPN-UML JN Khanal and the government talk team leader Kamal Thapa with the leaders of the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) on November 18 were slated to be decisive, but failed, although Dahal had hectic consultations with the top leaders of the three major parties and the leaders of the UDMF. The meeting of coalition partners and the main opposition party, the Nepali Congress, held on November 22, too had failed to form a common stance on solving the problem. The government is determined not to solve the issue in a hurry on the terms of the agitators. Perhaps, it has not realized the gravity of the situation. The NC too cannot absolve itself from the prolonged crisis as it is the creation of the Sushil Koirala led government. Had it been sensitive and determined to solve the problem, it could not have even cropped up.

The government has been forming talk teams one after another. The committee, which has been headed by PK Dahal is the second in order since the KP Sharma ‘Oli’ led government has been formed, will not be able to break the ice. It may require yet another committee that may include those leaders who are either sympathetic towards Madhesi demands or with PM Oli and others whose interests are involved in the resolution of the problem. Till such times, it will be sheer repetition of the formation of the talk team formed by the then PM Sushil Koirala. Sadly, the failure of the meeting has sent a negative message as it failed to include the Nepali Congress on the one hand and could not bring any concrete proposal, on the other.

PK Dahal seems to have been rightly made the leader of the team as he is in the position to convince the parties in power and in opposition to accept the formulas advanced by him as his party’s numerical strength is decisive for the stability of the present government and also for the formation of any new government in the future, provided the NC and the UML patch their differences on their own. He must pursue his effort with an open mind and full determination. He must include the Nepali Congress in the talk team to succeed in his efforts. Interestingly, he must start with a point where the crux of the problem lies. So far, it seems that the government accepts that the main problem explicitly lies with India and not with the agitating parties of Madhes. The fact that all fuel supplies are coming from India and through Madhes cannot be overlooked.   For smooth transit of goods from India, India has to remove the Madhesi agitators from the border for which it has to use force as Nepal had done once. It may lead to bloodshed also and India must be ready for that. From Nepali side it is possible as it has been using violence against people who have resorted to protesting as has been done in the past and even today. It had never condemned such acts of the security personnel who deliberately hit the heads of the agitators.

Due to the Madhes agitation most of the common people, including students and daily wage earners, have to suffer most in the Madhes. The problems of Madhes do not appear to be the problems of Nepal as Madhesi people are often taken as alien to it. On the contrary, the media and the intelligentsia appeared to be more concerned about the hardship experienced by the Kathmanduites and people from other hill areas. The high-ranking leaders and officials do not face any shortages of fuel as they might have been getting regular supplies from the army or police depots and from the Nepal Oil Corporation directly. It is really the common people, who are struggling for their existence, who have to suffer. Of course, with the supplies from India increased and some quantity of petrol and diesel received from China, the fuel crisis has eased to some extent.

Interestingly, the root cause is the matter of delineation of provinces where the interests of a handful of leaders of all major parties are at stake. Nobody can dare to advise them to see the interest of the country, its integration and sovereignty keeping aside their personal interests. They seem to be under the false impression that if the agitation prolongs, it will automatically collapse. The younger generation is as nationalistic as anybody else but their nationalism is slightly different from that of the others. It would be better to negotiate with the Madhes parties soon. The government should not delay dialogue in search of genuine demands for it is difficult to decide which demands are genuine and for whom. The settlement with the agitators will naturally lift the obstruction, and India too cannot make excuses for restricting supplies any more in the name of bandhs carried out by the Madhes outfits.