West Nepal shut down by group seeking Hindu state

KATHMANDU - Violence erupted in western Nepal Monday as a Hindu group clamped a shutdown demanding the restoration of a Hindu state ahead of the promulgation of a new constitution in May.

A little-known group calling itself the Vishwa Ekata Parishad set two buses and a motorcycle on fire in Kailali district for venturing out during the general strike that has affected nearly five remote districts.

The group is seeking to reinstate Hinduism as the state religion. Nepal was the only Hindu kingdom in the world till 2006, when an anti-monarchy campaign led to parliament declaring the country secular.

Two years later, a newly elected house also abolished monarchy by overwhelming majority to turn Nepal into a secular, federal republic.

A new constitution, to be promulgated in May, is expected to consolidate the nature of the secular republic and bring lasting peace in a country racked by a decade of Maoist insurgency and political upheavals.

However, ahead of the new constitution, Hindu groups have begun raising demands for a Hindu state.

Last week, a National Religious Revival Campaign kicked off in Kathmandu, attended by preachers, lawmakers and veteran politicians, making the same demand.

There has also been a series of visits by Hindu preachers, including controversial Indian Chandraswamy, who have been attending rituals calling for a Hindu state.

The last of them, a nine-day ritual, was attended by three former prime ministers of Nepal and deposed Hindu king Gyanendra himself in a show of solidarity.

While the other Hindu groups say they are advocating a Hindu state but not the return of monarchy, Nepal’s only openly royalist party, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (Nepal), however, is demanding both.

Kamal Thapa, who was home minister in King Gyanendra’s regime and heads the royalist party, has warned of protests against the new constitution unless the government holds a referendum ahead of it.

Thapa says people should be allowed to decide if they want a king and a Hindu state through the referendum.

In the past, the party called a general strike in Kathmandu valley to show its clout and also blockaded major ministries.

With the death of Girija Prasad Koirala, who led the movement for a secular and democratic Nepal, it is now feared that the feuding parties of Nepal might fail to implement the new constitution in time.