The people’s movement gradually reached its zenith when the King was forced to make a proclamation twice within a week under the tremendous pressure of the indefinite strike in which tens of thousands had defied the curfew, which was being imposed everyday in the capital and other places in the country. People were not scared of merciless baton charges, shooting of tear gas shells and indiscriminate firing of bullets even above the neck that violated the international code of conduct.

Fortunately, the royal proclamation came out around midnight on April 24, just 12 hours before the seven-party alliance could have taken out the unprecedented mass rally with the participation of some two million people. The King, through his proclamation, has accepted that the source of state authority and sovereignty of Nepal is the Nepali people. Acknowledging the spirit of the people’s movement as well as the need to resolve the violent conflict and other problems, the royal proclamation reinstated the House of Representatives in accordance with the road map of the alliance. The King has called upon the alliance to bear the responsibility of taking the nation towards the path of national unity and prosperity while ensuring permanent peace and safeguarding multiparty democracy. The King has expressed his confidence that the nation will forge ahead towards sustainable peace, progress, full-fledged democracy and national unity.

The three-week protests are reported to have taken a toll of at least 18 people with around 5,000 injured and four missing. The protests had started on April 6 to continue till the people’s sovereignty was restored to them in such a way that no King could ever usurp it in future. The people had once again decided to become their own masters as they had every right to fashion their own destiny. Although this right was restored to the people after the 1990 people’s movement through the Constitution of 1990, which confirmed the sovereignty of the people and accepted constitutional monarchy in which the King was reduced to a titular head having power to exercise the executive power only on the advice of the council of ministers, it got eroded gradually. The late king gradually usurped the right and the leaders failed to control him due to their own bickering. Ultimately, it was completely usurped by the present King.

To some, the credit for this mass upsurge goes to the Maoists for their demand for restoring sovereignty to the people. In the beginning, they opposed the democratically elected government and then they started opposing the King when he began to rule directly. There were about a dozen governments formed during the last 12 years, but no government could dare to raise its voice against the King so loudly as has been done by the Maoists. The agitation that began simultaneously in the districts as well as in the capital by the alliance, having support of the Maoists, forced the King to lend his ear to the voice of the people paving the way for democracy.

The agitation was started on the basis of the 12-point understanding reached between the alliance and the Maoists on November 22, 2005. The understanding has accepted the election to the constituent assembly as its only goal that has to be attained through the restoration of the parliament and formation of an all-party government. The government will negotiate with the Maoists for bringing them into the political mainstream and for laying down of arms, as they have already accepted the competitive multiparty democratic system in principle. Significantly, the major slogan of the agitation is the restoration or attainment of total democracy. The term ‘democracy’ always stands for total democracy or full democracy and never for a piecemeal or incomplete one. It is a political system guaranteeing individual’s freedom and dignity to enable one to actualise his full potentialities without exploiting others, as every individual is an end in himself.

Since the House of Representatives has been reinstated, an all-party government would be formed within a couple of days, which will be holding elections to the constituent assembly. But, to some, since the agitating masses had already gone for total democracy, pacifying and stopping the agitation at this point is an unwise political step as it is falling short of their supreme aspiration. Election to the constituent assembly will never be an end in itself, as it always remains a means. It decides the mode of government or the form of government that meets the needs of a nation such as parliamentary system or presidential system and a federal system or a unitary system. Whether the country should go for full-fledged democracy doing away with the institution of monarchy as it has outlived its utility or not is the basic issue which has to be settled for ever by the people themselves through this kind of movement, as it cannot be postponed for an indefinite period at the cost of the precious lives and sufferings of the common man.

Prof Mishra is ex-election commissioner