It has been well proved that in its current shape, the proposed constitution of Nepal does not guarantee an effective model of federalism, and that it has discriminatory citizenship provisions. Thus, the uproar against it is justified. But resorting to mindless violence and later inviting even harsher state reactions is not something which will be beneficial in the long run. Like in other democracies of South Asia, the concept of ‘political economy’ is rarely considered in Nepal—a clear distinction is made between ‘politics’ and ‘economy’.

Unnatural separation

Because the political classes have perhaps never been concerned with it, there has been a failure over the decades to propagate the importance of a strong national economy. The cost of goods and services clearly indicates an income divide among the population; this contributes to issues of marginalisation among certain groups. In tandem with the current state of inconclusive political processes, the economic situation does not look promising—the unnatural number of emigrants and import of goods shows no signs of stopping.

A very low trade volume and unfavourable macroeconomic indicators undermine the potential for economic growth that Nepal has with its competent human resources and abundant and untapped natural resources. The dwindling industries, infrastructures, and peoples’ trust in establishments have made the people in places like Janakpur full of despair and angst. Since the outbreak of the Maoist rebellion, these places suffered immensely. They lost the shine which not long ago was their hallmark. The dormant state of such places is very alarming.

But the shifts in modes of production from these terrains have serious implications. The recent series of unfortunate events, such as the killings of both civilians and police at Jaleswar and in Kailali, manifests the growing intolerance and angst. The economic situation has been hindered by this. A political divide has been created, but the government is in no hurry to bring an end to this stalemate, which would allow millions of houses—in areas cut from civil supplies due to the riots—to once again continue to function.

Supply trucks are stranded near the fringe towns of the Nepali-Indian border as a result of the recent political turmoil. It is unfortunate that this state of uncertain road blockades has now come to be known as the new ‘normal’. With how things are working right now, words like ‘inclusiveness’ are only empty promises which do not help people who have no way of surviving with the loses of their civic and economic tractions.

The noticeable effect of these circumstances is the large scale emigration of people to countries with high labour demands—although these are cases of ‘upward mobility’ because of the condition these people have to live in. The fields of economy and sociology agree that the unnatural trend of emigration is tantamount to the disintegration of the national economy.

Another tragedy along the same lines is the rampant human trafficking that has been present across Nepal in recent years. On September 9, 2015, The Indian Express reported news of a diplomat from Saudi Arabia in New Delhi who was booked (but not arrested) for the gang-rape and wrongful confinement of two women-a woman, 44, and her daughter, 20, from the Morang district of Nepal. This came into light through the efforts of the NGO Maiti Nepal and the Nepali Embassy in New Delhi. Will the Nepali government come forward and act against this exploitation of diplomatic immunity to bring justice to those women?

The effects of the fractured-economy are many. It would be a daunting task to investigate its implications on the human sufferings of the people. As the royals have long gone out of the scene, the radicals no longer stand for the cause they once stood for and the moderates have been ineffective, the only hope are the masses. They should come together to clean Nepali.

Thakur is a New Delhi-based journalist and writer