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This happened before. It turns out that PM Koirala's remark on retaining some form of monarchy was, after all, merely a spin of some journalists.
As soon as the Maoists decried him, Koirala denied making any such comments, but said the Nepali journalists misquoted him, perhaps not understanding his remarks in English. So, now it is upto the Pakistani journalists present there (Are you listening?) to help verify the fact to save face of the Nepali patrakars.
Koirala says it again-- Step down, king.
The latest story is a history in itself. And not just Nepali, but Indian media interest is intense on this. The Hindustan Times reports that for the first time in the history of Nepal, the parliament has passed a bill to put an end to the monarchy.
TOI says the amendment gives the Maoists an opportunity to try oust the king before November by blaming him for the mounting violence in the Terai (read this too for a Hindu connection). Kolkotta's Calcutta Telegraph says now the move is toward a diaper monarch. Just expect more editorials with a diversity of views in the Indian media on this issue.
Here is another huge media event of the year. Bollywood catches up fast with Hollywood. The third season of the Indian version of the reality show "Idol" (Sony TV) has a Nepali competitor, who may well be regarded as south Asia's own Sanjaya!
Prasant Tamang, 24, a police man from Kolkotta, originally from Darjeeling, is fast becoming something of a Nepali icon, media reports say. Watch Prashat YouTube clips here.
CPN(UML) chief Madhav Nepal wraps up his week-long India tour that he describes as "extremely successful." Madhav of UML is not Girija Koirla of NC and under normal circumstances he would garner little attention in New Delhi. The Indian leaders basically told Nepal what he wanted to hear from them as opposed to what he would actually hear from them. But read this article in the Hindu, between the lines, to make sense of what "extremely" sucessful trip may entail.
MP Mani Kumar Subba's saga is but one of many stories about Nepalis living in India. Now that he has made to New Delhi's power circles, he must be the target of India's intellegence agency, and its apex court. Whatever the truth about his past, he has to prove he is a pukka Indian. But the fact of the matter is millions of India-born Nepalis have been denied citizenship all their lives. So Subba may not prove Indian citizenship even if he was born in India.
As soon as there is a semblance of an internal peace in Nepal, it is as if the Indians and the Nepalis must start it all over again. For years, after the democratic changes of 1990, the two sides collided over Mahakali, Kalapani, ISI (Pakistani Intellegence Agents), and other land encroachments by India. Now that old game is just getting revived.
• Nepalis 'occupy' 205 acres in Bihar, Times of India
• India cuts oil duties for Nepal, Kantipur Online
• Indo-Nepal boundary pact soon, Gulf Times, Qatar
• Indo-Nepal border is hub for criminals, Hindustan Times
• Terrorists using Nepal, Bangla borders to enter India: Army, Peninsula On-line
• Indians in Nepal are hostage to fortune, Hindustan Times
• Nepal farmers plough in Indian soil, CNN-IBN
• Anti-India axis in Nepal, Daily Pioneer
• Indian patients robbed in Nepal, India eNews
King Jigme Singhe Wangchuk, 50, received a mammoth treat in New Delhi-- he was the chief guest at India's Repubic Day celeberations. But India's apparently cordial gesture was after all not that apparently cordial. As the Times of India opined: "The king's visit cannot be seen as one that celebrates the spirit of the Indian republic. Hence, the visit is ofstrategic importance to India. The Sikkim-Nepal-Bhutan triangle has generally been ignored, with Bhutan being subjected to benign neglect...Inviting the king is part of a larger appeasement policy." (The Times of India, Jan 27/05)
• Bhutan, India wary abou letting China into SAARC, NIP, Jan 26/05
• India pledges enhanced aid to Bhutan, Xinhua, Jan 29
• Bhutan to sign three MoUs with India: Wangchuk, NK, Jan 25/05
• India, Bhutan sign landmark rail link accord, AsiaTimes, Jan 26/05
Tired of reading the Indian media's Nepal stories? What about Nepal specials, such as Times of India's "special report" entitled "The Kingdom Under Clouds"? An awful lot of bad press across the southern border for some years now is surely a subject of distaste and condemnation. Well, this one does not seem to go that far, or may be any near. Forget the many other facets of Nepal-India ties and issues at stake that remain untouched, the newspaper's Nepal supplement definitely does some prodding of the Indian perspectives.
An Indian Intelligence report, supposedly leaked to India Today magazine, makes serious allegations against Nepal.
• India Today commentary
• Spotlight magazine's commentary
• Nepali Times' commentary
• Indian Denial, the Kathmandu Post editorial
• Indian Envoy, in an interview with KantipurOnline: "There is no question about the GOI conveying anything through the media."
• Wake-up call': India Today stands by its story/report
• The Hindu: June 25: Indo-Nepal security ties to be strenthened