During his rousing speech at the Parliament this week, Health Minister Gagan Thapa tried to allay the fears of those wary that the impeachment motion against the suspended CIAA chief Lokman Singh Karki would once again break the unity among parties and sideline the constitutional amendment process by asking MPs to introspect on whether the house was indeed ever united. He went on to propose that the impeachment proceedings, rather than distract, would offer the opportunity to bring about a new form of unity; that the motion would not affect the constitutional amendment process.

Minister Thapa’s eloquent oratory undoubtedly struck a chord with those in attendance at the Parliament and the denizens watching the proceedings on television, but the lack of progress on the addressing of Madhesi (and janajati) grievances in the country’s corridors of power should indeed raise alarm bells among the citizenry. It is after all an issue the country has grappled with since 2007.

Next week will mark the three months since Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal assumed executive power. His three-point agreement with the Madhesi parties, in return for their support in his bid for office, will also be three months old. The Madhesi demands—to amend the constitution with the reshaping proposed provincial borders—however, still remain unanswered. It is perhaps ironic that one of the main allegations lodged against the previous KP Oli-led government was that it completely ignored the Madhes issue. But having come to power, Prachanda, who once professed to have a “love affair” with the Madhes, has yet to do anything substantial. Nothing of note on the issue came from the Prime Minister’s visit to India, save a single formal meeting with the Madhesi parties. If the “gentleman’s agreement” that transfers over the executive office to Sher Bahadur Deuba in nine months is to be honoured, the PM now has just six months to address an issue that has been in a gridlock for almost a decade. 

The present impasse primarily arises from the fact that the Madhesi parties, aggrieved by historic socio-cultural injustices, have been demanding that the demarcation of the provinces must be carried out based on identity. But if once they were behind the “Ek Madhes, Ek Pradesh” (One Madhes, One Province) slogan, a compromise was reached over the years where there were to be two states, instead of a single one running from Mechi to Mahakali. However, the constitution that was promulgated by an overwhelming parliamentary majority entirely missed the point of the Madhesi demand. It divides entire Madhes into several states, all of which, except the state number 2, are amalgamated with the mountains and hills. On their part, the mainstream parties openly ignored the Madhesi parties during the constitution formation, especially after the earthquake and during the unofficial border blockade. But while the establishment parties should not have turned a deaf ear towards the Madhesi demands without reaching out for a consensus, they do have a point in not fulfilling this particular demand of the Madhesi parties to the letter. There are many Pahades in districts like Jhapa and Sunsari who do not want to be a part of a Madhesi state, cut across the east-west direction. If there were to be an open referendum tomorrow in these districts, it would be interesting to see what side the majority would vote for.

It is, however, never too late to acknowledge in earnest that Madhesi parties do represent a significant voice of the Madhes, if not the entire Madhes. While chatting to this author, Tula Narayan Shah, a Madhesi civil society member and an activist, he stated, “What went wrong during the constitution making process is not just the federal model. In my view, the entire political process of the constitution was wrong as it ignored the Madhesi parties. Without their support, the constitution cannot be politically implemented at all. Now, the establishment parties need to engage seriously with the Madhesi parties. That is the most important starting point.”

Basanta Basnet, a journalist who reports on the Madhes issue, opined that (including) the eastern districts like Jhapa, Morang and Sunsari in state number 2, can actually be detrimental to Madhesi aspirations because Madhesis then will have a strong competition for the sub-national state resources and positions from Pahades in the districts. When asked about a possible meeting point of the Madhesi parties and the mainstream parties, Basnet said, “There are Madhesi belts in Sunsari and Morang, which can be attached to the state number 2. And the Nawalparasi-Bardiya belt can be made another state, whose identity can be based on Tharus. Likewise, Kailali and Kanchanpur can remain in the state number 7 but with a “protected area” status for Tharus.”

Which is not to say that the state restructuring process can be solved in one go. If anything, the continued deadlock shows that there is not one single “silver bullet” that can lay the issue to bed. However, if the nation is to seriously rise above the innumerable transitions and implement the hard-won constitution, there is a serious need for the initiation of engagement and debates now. This week, the Sanghiya Gathabandhan, which includes the Madhesi parties and Janajati-Aadivaasi organisations, formally decided that it will not allow elections to occur without the constitutional amendment. And without the elections, the constitution is bound to be ensnared in deep legal and political crisis. It, therefore, is high time that the establishment parties and the Madhesi parties came up with a solution that strikes a compromise. It is highly likely that the solution cannot feasibly be the two Madhes state solution, nor can it be a continued bulldozing of ethnically marginalised voices. The solution will have to trace a tenuous middle ground that we as a country need to come up with.

What is more, the time is right for the political parties to showcase that Nepal can deal with multiple issues at the same time. The time for distractions, even ones as important as the impeachment of Lokman Singh Karki, is over. 

Minister Thapa’s eloquent oratory undoubtedly struck a chord with those in attendance at the Parliament and the denizens watching the proceedings on television, but the lack of progress on the addressing of Madhesi (and janajati) grievances in the country’s corridors of power should indeed raise alarm bells among the citizenry. It is after all an issue the country has grappled with since 2007.

Next week will mark the three months since Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal assumed executive power. His three-point agreement with the Madhesi parties, in return for their support in his bid for office, will also be three months old. The Madhesi demands—to amend the constitution with the reshaping proposed provincial borders—however, still remain unanswered. It is perhaps ironic that one of the main allegations lodged against the previous KP Oli-led government was that it completely ignored the Madhes issue. But having come to power, Prachanda, who once professed to have a “love affair” with the Madhes, has yet to do anything substantial. Nothing of note on the issue came from the Prime Minister’s visit to India, save a single formal meeting with the Madhesi parties. If the “gentleman’s agreement” that transfers over the executive office to Sher Bahadur Deuba in nine months is to be honoured, the PM now has just six months to address an issue that has been in a gridlock for almost a decade.  

The present impasse primarily arises from the fact that the Madhesi parties, aggrieved by historic socio-cultural injustices, have been demanding that the demarcation of the provinces must be carried out based on identity. But if once they were behind the “Ek Madhes, Ek Pradesh” (One Madhes, One Province) slogan, a compromise was reached over the years where there were to be two states, instead of a single one running from Mechi to Mahakali. However, the constitution that was promulgated by an overwhelming parliamentary majority entirely missed the point of the Madhesi demand. It divides entire Madhes into several states, all of which, except the state number 2, are amalgamated with the mountains and hills. On their part, the mainstream parties openly ignored the Madhesi parties during the constitution formation, especially after the earthquake and during the unofficial border blockade. But while the establishment parties should not have turned a deaf ear towards the Madhesi demands without reaching out for a consensus, they do have a point in not fulfilling this particular demand of the Madhesi parties to the letter. There are many Pahades in districts like Jhapa and Sunsari who do not want to be a part of a Madhesi state, cut across the east-west direction. If there were to be an open referendum tomorrow in these districts, it would be interesting to see what side the majority would vote for. 

It is, however, never too late to acknowledge in earnest that Madhesi parties do represent a significant voice of the Madhes, if not the entire Madhes. While chatting to this author, Tula Narayan Shah, a Madhesi civil society member and an activist, he stated, “What went wrong during the constitution making process is not just the federal model. In my view, the entire political process of the constitution was wrong as it ignored the Madhesi parties. Without their support, the constitution cannot be politically implemented at all. Now, the establishment parties need to engage seriously with the Madhesi parties. That is the most important starting point.” 

Basanta Basnet, a journalist who reports on the Madhes issue, opined that (including) the eastern districts like Jhapa, Morang and Sunsari in state number 2, can actually be detrimental to Madhesi aspirations because Madhesis then will have a strong competition for the sub-national state resources and positions from Pahades in the districts. When asked about a possible meeting point of the Madhesi parties and the mainstream parties, Basnet said, “There are Madhesi belts in Sunsari and Morang, which can be attached to the state number 2. And the Nawalparasi-Bardiya belt can be made another state, whose identity can be based on Tharus. Likewise, Kailali and Kanchanpur can remain in the state number 7 but with a “protected area” status for Tharus.” 

Which is not to say that the state restructuring process can be solved in one go. If anything, the continued deadlock shows that there is not one single “silver bullet” that can lay the issue to bed. However, if the nation is to seriously rise above the innumerable transitions and implement the hard-won constitution, there is a serious need for the initiation of engagement and debates now. This week, the Sanghiya Gathabandhan, which includes the Madhesi parties and Janajati-Aadivaasi organisations, formally decided that it will not allow elections to occur without the constitutional amendment. And without the elections, the constitution is bound to be ensnared in deep legal and political crisis. It, therefore, is high time that the establishment parties and the Madhesi parties came up with a solution that strikes a compromise. It is highly likely that the solution cannot feasibly be the two Madhes state solution, nor can it be a continued bulldozing of ethnically marginalised voices. The solution will have to trace a tenuous middle ground that we as a country need to come up with. 

What is more, the time is right for the political parties to showcase that Nepal can deal with multiple issues at the same time. The time for distractions, even ones as important as the impeachment of Lokman Singh Karki, is over.