Nepal citizens want royals back; Kathmandu rocked by protests demanding monarchy's return

A pro-monarch march was held in Nepal's capital city of Kathmandu on Saturday where hundreds took to the streets with national flags to extend their support to a constitutional monarchy. Opposing Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's government, hundreds of pro-monarchy supporters took to the streets in a pre-organised and well-advertised rally on December 5 to declare Nepal a Hindu state.

'We would fight for it'

According to news agency ANI, the participants of Saturday's massive rally chanted slogans in favour of the Hindu monarchy and demanded the reinstatement of constitutional monarchy in the Himalayan Nation which they claimed was for the sake of country's national unity and well-being of the people.

"Today, participants are here without being driven by any impulsive feelings, as the movement led by youths has already set off. We can dream of our beautiful Nepal and this nation would obviously get back its monarch status of a Hindu-state. Until and unless we achieve our aim we would fight for it," Amir KC, one of the participants in the march who claimed to be leading over 250 youths from Lalitpur to the venue told ANI.

Saturday's demonstration comes as a series of similar protests were held in the past month for a constitutional monarchy. On November 10, a group with banner "Nationalist Civic Society" staged a demonstration in Jamal of Kathmandu, demanding restoration of constitutional monarchy and announce Nepal a Hindu state. Two days later, a group named Nepal Scholar Council held a demonstration in Biratnagar with the same demands.

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Again on November 19, another group under the banner "Independent Nationalist Citizens Far-West" demonstrated in Dhangadhi followed by a protest in Pokhara on November 25 under the banner "Western Nepali Citizens" and "Nepal Nationalist Group" in Janakpur of Nepal. The trend of staging demonstrations in other parts of the country also continued to rise as a similar protest was held in Hetauda on 29 November under the banner "Restoration of Constitution Movement" and another protest on 30 November in Kathmandu itself.

The ruling party has been unpopular lately because it is embroiled in infighting and corruption and has failed to control the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ministry of Home Affairs in Nepal, meanwhile, had issued directives to 77 districts to quell the current spate of protests, through force if needed.

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Protestors on Saturday displayed placards bearing a photo of Prithivi Narayan Shah, the founding father of modern Nepal along with national flags while they chanted slogans against the Federal Democratic Republican System that Nepal adopted in 2008 after the abolition of 240-year-old monarchy. Nepal has transitioned into a federal democratic republic after the promulgation of a new constitution in 2015. First General Election of 2017 held after promulgation charter gave a clear mandate to an alliance of the then CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center) incumbent NCP which is now in power. 

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