Long live the king: Why this nation debates the return of monarchy

16 years after the monarchy was abolished, a violent push to restore it reveals a deep hunger for competent leadership

Violent protests took place in Nepal last week as pro-monarchy groups demanded the return of former King Gyanendra Shah to power, 16 years after the monarchy was abolished in the mountainous nation.

Kathmandu, the capital of Nepal, saw twin protests on March 28. The rally led by the United People’s Movement Committee, a coalition supporting monarchy, devolved into clashes with security forces and resulted in the deaths of at least two people, including a journalist.

Another rally, organized by several republican political parties that formed the Socialist Alliance to “defeat regressive and reactionary forces,” processed peacefully.

Two different locations were allocated for rallies. However, the pro-monarchy rally got out of control. Protesters burned private homes, vehicles, and media houses, and attacked journalists as well as the offices of political parties. Pro-monarchy groups also looted supermarkets, homes, and department stores.

According to the Ministry of Home Affairs, at least 80 people were injured during the protest, including 15 police officers.

The Nepal Police arrested around 111 people, including Rabindra Mishra, the former editor-in-chief of the BBC Nepali Service, who entered Nepalese politics in 2017 and formed the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP). 

Mishra and RPP General Secretary Dhawal Shamsher Rana, who was also arrested during the protest, have been charged with treason by the Kathmandu District Court. Both Mishra and Rana were accused of inciting the protesters.

The chief coordinator of the pro-royalist movement, Nawaraj Subedi, an 87-year-old politician who was a leader in the country’s Panchayat system, which was established by King Mahendra in 1960 and remained in force until the 1990s, was placed under house arrest. 

Security agencies also initiated a search of Durga Prasai, labeled by local media as the chief commander of the ongoing royalist movement. Prasai, a controversial businessman who has been implicated in a bank loan fraud, allegedly provoked the crowd and triggering widespread stone-pelting, according to witnesses. Prasai later released a video apologizing for the incident, claiming he was not hiding. 

The committee behind the royalist movement was formed earlier in March, after thousands of people joined a demonstration in the capital in support of restoring the monarchy with the former king, Gyanendra Shah, as its head.

On February 18, the eve of Nepal’s Democracy Day, Shah issued a statement from the city of Pokhara where he was staying, expressing concern that the country’s long-term peace, stability, and sovereignty have started to erode in recent years. “Even though the reins of the state power have been in the hands of many repeatedly, or even though it has changed, our existing state system does not seem to be able to make any profound contribution to the happiness, peace, and prosperity of the nation,” he was quoted by local media as saying. 

Upon his arrival in Kathmandu, pro-monarchy supporters gathered outside of Tribhuvan International Airport in and welcomed the former royal, giving pro-monarchy forces a signal for a coordinated political action. 

The government reacts 

Following the violence, the government led by K.P. Sharma Oli, who was sworn in as Nepal’s prime minister in May last year, has signaled its intent to take action against pro-monarchy groups. 

The government has reduced the security detail assigned to Gyanendra Shah and reshuffled the security team. Before the Kathmandu incident, 26 police officers were assigned to his security, but after the violence, the government reduced the number to 16.

According to government sources, further action may be taken against Shah. “The government is taking former King Gyanendra’s activities seriously and might take further action within the next few days,” a senior government official told RT.

The ‘Arrest Gyanendra’ campaign has gained momentum in social media following the protests. Despite differences on various issues, major political parties of the country share the same stance regarding Gyanendra’s activities.

Ram Prasad Shrestha, a former member of the Judicial Council called for investigating former king’s involvement in the movement and held accountable for the violence that occurred, if found guilty. “The current crisis has emerged because of the immunity he was granted,” he said.

Journalist Harihar Birahi, who served as a member of the Commission of Inquiry into the suppression of the second people’s movement in 2006, also believes that these circumstances provide sufficient grounds to investigate Gyanendra’s role in the movement. 

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Major political parties have demanded legal action against Shah. The Nepali Congress party, the main coalition partner in the government, has accused him of being responsible for the March 28 violence in Kathmandu. “The kind of activities that took place in the name of royalism – former King Gyanendra Shah is fully responsible for them. He should take responsibility for the actions carried out under his direct influence,” Ram Saran Mahat, a leader of the Nepali Congress, said.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ – the leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and former prime minister – stated that the former king was directly involved in the events that unfolded over the past six months. He added that political parties and the government could not take a lenient stance on him. “Gyanendra Shah cannot be allowed to go unpunished. The Nepali people are not ready for that. The government must take this seriously. It is now very clear that Gyanendra Shah is behind everything that has been happening,” Prachanda said, according to the Kathmandu Post. 

Political analyst Jhalak Subedi, in a conversation with RT, suggested that the main plan was orchestrated under the leadership of the former king, who “has been preparing for the restoration of the monarchy for a couple of years.” Subedi also claimed that Gyanendra has support by “India’s Hindus” and that Indian media has been “consistently giving priority” to the movement for the restoration of the Hindu state and monarchy in Nepal.

Indeed, a political controversy arose in Nepal in March, after Gyanendra supporters flashed posters with the image of India’s Uttar Pradesh state chief minister Yogi Adityanath during their rallies in Kathmandu. Adityanath is known for viewing the neighboring country as a “Hindu state.” According to Indian media, ties between Nepal’s royal Shah dynasty and the Goraksh Peeth, a monastery of the Nath tradition, which is currently lead by monk-turned-chief minister Adityanath, date back centuries. On April 1, days after the deadly unrest Kathmandu, Nepal’s ambassador to India, Shankar Sharma, met with Adityanath in India’s Lucknow to discuss bilateral relations. 

Done with the royals 

Gyanendra Shah assumed the crown in 2001 after his brother, then-King Birendra, was killed in a massacre at the Narayanhiti Royal Palace. The attack, allegedly carried out by Crown Prince Dipendra, resulted in the assassination of much of the royal family before Dipendra took his own life.

In February 2005, Gyanendra seized power from the civilian government – a move that made him deeply unpopular. He dissolved the government, banned news reporting, and authorized the army to arrest senior political leaders, journalists, trade unionists, human rights activists, and civil society members. All telephone and internet connections were cut.

In response, the parliamentary political parties and the Maoist rebels – then engaged in armed conflict – joined forces and launched a united movement against the monarchy. Following a 19-day people’s uprising, Gyanendra relinquished power to political parties in 2006. Two years later, the Constituent Assembly formally abolished the monarchy, forcing Gyanendra to vacate the Narayanhiti Palace.

The government subsequently allocated Nagarjuna Palace, located seven kilometers west of the capital, as his residence. Since then, he has traveled to various districts, organizing public engagement programs. In recent months, however, he has become increasingly active in campaigning for the restoration of the monarchy.

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Why people want the king back? 

Only around 5% of Nepal’s parliamentarians advocate for monarchism. They belong to the right-wing Rastriya Prajatantra Party, which campaigns for reinstating Nepal as a Hindu kingdom. 

Political analysts suggest that public frustration with the government’s poor service delivery, corruption, and unemployment has created dissatisfaction. Yubaraj Ghimire, a senior Nepali journalist, suggested that in recent times, political parties had failed to deliver and have become extremely corrupt.

Tanka Karki, a political analyst and former Nepali ambassador to China, believes, however, that former king wrongly believed he had widespread public support. “The only alternative to democracy is democracy itself; the restoration of the monarchy is not possible,” Karki told RT. “Shah made a daring but unsuccessful attempt.” He suggested that the events of the past week provided lessons to all political parties in the country. 

Subedi believes that former King Gyanendra and his movement weakened after the March 28 Kathmandu incident. “The restoration of the monarchy is not possible. I see it facing suppression once again,” he said.