It has been 17 years since the people turned Gyanendra Shah from a king into a citizen. Now, Gyanendra seems once again possessed by the desire to become king.
His ambition to become king for the ‘third’ time claimed the lives of two Nepalis in the capital on Friday. Private property was vandalized. Media houses were attacked. Government offices and vehicles fell victim to arson. Private businesses were looted. Meanwhile, Durga Prasai, the commander of the movement appointed by Gyanendra, remains at large.
Through this editorial, we urge both Gyanendra Shah—who is still fixated on becoming king—and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), the fifth-largest party in parliament, to calmly reflect on a few things. We also have some requests for the government.
The first question to the king and RPP: Do you genuinely want to become king? Does RPP truly intend to make Gyanendra king?
In our view, Gyanendra’s desire to become king again is both wrong and impossible. But one is entitled to dream. One can certainly wish to make Gyanendra king.
There are two paths to this: one is the legitimate route of the ‘ballot.’ The other is the challenging path through the streets, which, if successful, would be termed a ‘revolution’, and if unsuccessful, a ‘counter-revolution.’
We first want to remind RPP and Gyanendra Shah of how he was made a citizen. If that memory hadn’t faded, or if history had been properly evaluated, neither Gyanendra nor his supporters would be possessed by this desire to become or make a king today. Nor would two lives have been lost in the capital on Friday.
The Nepali people and politicians ended the monarchy through both the paths of ‘revolution’ and the ‘ballot.’ First, the Janaandolan forced Gyanendra and his followers to their knees. Then, in the Constituent Assembly, all but four of the 601 representatives elected by the people (those four being RPP lawmakers) voted in favor of a republic, removing Gyanendra from the throne.
Thus, through the power of ‘revolution’ and the ‘ballot,’ the people turned ‘King Gyanendra’ into ‘Citizen Gyanendra.’ Even after Gyanendra misused state power to suppress the Janaandolan, the people allowed him to leave Narayanhiti Palace, live freely, and engage in business.
Few dictators who usurp the people’s rule have been granted such leniency in history. Many have been imprisoned, while others have faced the death penalty.
Let’s take the example of Britain, a nation with a long history of parliamentary democracy and monarchy.
In the 17th century, King Charles I repeatedly dissolved parliament and consolidated all power in his hands. This led to a prolonged conflict with parliament, plunging the country into civil war. Ultimately, the army fighting for the parliament defeated the king’s forces. King Charles I was arrested, tried, and in 1649, a court sentenced him to death for tyranny and treason.
Imagine for a moment—if, in 2005, when Gyanendra Shah seized power with the military’s backing in Nepal, Queen Elizabeth had also done the same in Britain, what would have happened? Would the British people have forced her to kneel, escorted her with security to live in another palace with a smile, or arrested her and charged her for treason?
We are not suggesting that we should have done the same to Gyanendra Shah. What we did was right. It reduced conflict and the spirit of revenge. We didn’t set a precedent that the loser loses everything. Instead, we established a standard of tolerance and generosity for the Nepali people.
Gyanendra Shah should not mistake this for the people’s weakness.
Nor should RPP and royalists propagate the narrative that Gyanendra was great, that he left the palace smiling without a fuss.
The Constitution, forged through the Janaandolan II and the Constituent Assembly, has placed the former king at a certain position, and he should stay there. He must clearly understand that attempting to step beyond it will come at a cost.
Some are calling for Gyanendra Shah’s passport to be revoked. We believe this shouldn’t be done at this moment. However, the government should send a representative to ask Gyanendra Shah in clear terms: Will you respect the Constitution and stay within its dignity, or are you determined to overthrow it from the streets?
He can no longer escape accountability for the chaos caused in his name while sitting within the walls of Nirmal Niwas. His followers, at his behest, cannot wreak havoc on the streets to discard the Constitution and place him on the throne without him bearing responsibility for the consequences.
It was then-home minister Krishna Sitaula who went to Narayanhiti and told Gyanendra, “Your Majesty, you are now a citizen; leave the palace,” showing him the way to Nagarjun. Similarly, there’s no reason for the current home minister or a government representative to hesitate or delay in going to Nirmal Niwas to speak plainly with ‘Citizen Gyanendra.’ He is an ordinary citizen whom the state has provided security and a dignified, safe life at its expenses.
So, a government representative should tell him directly: Either abandon the dream of trampling the Constitution to become king and tell your followers to stop causing chaos on the streets, or be prepared to bear the consequences.
Then he will realize that he, too, must take responsibility for the chaos on Friday that claimed two lives. The accountability for any future movements in his name will rest with him.
Kathmandu’s Mayor Balen Shah sent the bill for the damage to public property in Tinkune on Friday to Gyanendra Shah, not Durga Prasai or Nava Raj Subedi. He did the right thing. By making it clear that the human and material losses from movements to make him king will fall on his head, Gyanendra will think and decide accordingly.
It’s time for RPP to think calmly and take a decision. Swearing allegiance to this Constitution, taking oaths under the republican Constitution to become ministers or deputy prime ministers when opportunities arise, and then trying to topple the Constitution through street chaos—or sneaking in an absolute monarchy under the guise of a constitutional one to leave everyone stunned—such duplicity will no longer be tolerated.
RPP can certainly advocate for a constitutional monarchy through the ballot and win elections to bring it about. That’s a legitimate path, and no one can stop it. If RPP builds public support and one day brings a king, we all must accept it. But if RPP believes it cannot reach its goal through the people’s vote because the public won’t support it, and thus opts for a street ‘revolution’ or chaos to install a king, there will be opposition. And it’s the duty of those who uphold the Constitution to oppose it.
This doesn’t mean attacking RPP. Its right to take to the streets must be respected. It must be allowed to hold rallies and processions. But if RPP intends to breach restricted zones, seize the parliament building or Singha Durbar, and place Gyanendra in Narayanhiti, there will be resistance—and there should be.
That’s what happened in Tinkune on Friday. As long as the royalists’ rally stayed within the state-designated area of Tinkune, it was fine. The police didn’t intervene. When the protesters tried to break the police cordon once or twice, the police pushed them back with persuasion or minor force. But when Durga Prasai tried to ram through the police with his vehicle, breaking the cordon, and when RPP leaders Rabindra Mishra and Dhawal Shumsher Rana incited the crowd to breach the cordon and march toward New Baneshwore and the parliament building, clashes erupted.
They cannot now complain that the police intervened.
Will the state, the police, the government elected by the people’s vote, or the republican parties that wrote this Constitution allow RPP and Gyanendra Shah’s supporters to occupy the parliament building or Singha Durbar and help install a king?
So, it’s time for RPP to decide: Will it stick to the peaceful path of bringing a king through the ‘ballot,’ or will it choose the streets to topple the Constitution? If it opts for the latter, it wouldn’t be morally right to remain in parliament under the same Constitution it seeks to discard.
RPP must decide whether it should RPP stay in Parliament respecting the Constitution, or resign from parliament and take to the streets to overthrow it. It must also be prepared to bear the consequences of the chaos the streets might bring.
We want to remind Gyanendra Shah and RPP of one thing: There are countless examples in history of street revolutions toppling dictators. We did the same in Nepal 17 years ago. But examples of streets installing a dictator who says, “I will rule over you,” are rare. Let it be noted: Dictators are born from military coups and are toppled by the streets.
Now, let Gyanendra Shah and RPP decide what they choose. The government, the state, republican parties, and citizens should prepare accordingly. The country cannot be kept in this chaos for long. It breeds further uncertainty. The nation grows weaker economically, socially, and politically.
This is a time to move the country forward. It’s a time to strengthen democracy and Nepali society by ending bad governance, cronyism, and excessive politicization—issues that have frustrated the people—through political and social reforms.
