For most part of its history, Nepal has been under the influence of the hereditary monarchies. The country was once divided into small territories or principalities before a patriotic and far-sighted King Prithvi Narayan Shah unified it with his “brave Gorkhali warriors” in 1768. Since then the monarch has been acting as the head of the state, playing an indispensable role in Nepalese politics.
Nepal remained isolated from the rest of the world until 1950 when it saw the first light of democracy. After years of experimenting with multiparty politics in Nepal, the democratic innovation failed to bear fruits, precipitating King Mahendra’s bloodless coup in 1959, suspension of the parliament and introduction of the direct rule. Then the king introduced Panchayat polity, his own version of a guided democracy, with the help of his “yes-men.” The thirty years of Panchayat polity under King Mahendra, the only Hindu monarch in the world, and his son Birendra could not better the lot of the Nepalese people. And the country ranked among the poorest countries in the world. The unpopular Panchayat system was toppled by the Jana Andolan or popular uprising in 1990 and replaced by a constitutional monarchy cast upon the British model. Though the new dispensation took many bold steps towards a full-fledged democracy, its reformative steps could not deliver the goods to the county’s impoverished multitude. The growing popular disenchantment with the new dispensation coupled with the self-centered attitude of political parties gave rise to the Maoist insurgence that threatened the very existence of Nepal as a sovereign nation.
Besides, Nepal has undergone a lot of political shuffing since then with frequent changes in the government. The royal massacre in June 2001 brought a new turn in the history of Shah Rule sweeping away the life of the King himself and those of his both sons leaving no descendants in his family. That is when his only brother who survived, King Gyanendra ascended the throne.
The current monarch took over the executive power twice, once in 2002 and again in 2005, accusing the ruling party of failing to stop the Maoist violence or negotiate a settlement with the rebels. This was met with scathing criticism by both the pro democratic and leftist parties. The seven opposition parties formed an alliance to a launch a joint street protest against the king’s direct rule. The alliance’s anti-monarchist movement spearheaded by the veteran leader Girija Prasad Koirala of Nepali Congress ultimately put an end to the royal direct rule and reduced him to mere a figure head. The Seven Party coalition also negotiated a peace pact with the Maoists party, putting at rest the rebels eleven years of insugency.
