Advocate Kamal Sapkota <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n The 15th general convention of the Nepali Congress is underway at the Khula Manch in Kathmandu. Although the leadership of Gagan Kumar Thapa was established after the special convention, the dispute with the Sher Bahadur Deuba faction over its legitimacy and political ownership has not been completely resolved. A chair was placed for Deuba at the inauguration ceremony, he was invited, but he did not attend. <\/p>\n On the other hand, notable leaders of the old establishment faction who did not participate in the special general convention have gradually returned to the mainstream led by Thapa.<\/p>\n Therefore, this is more than a simple ritual of electing the general convention office-bearers, it is a political moment for the Congress to redefine itself. <\/p>\n In the inaugural forum, the parties were different, the language was different and the political interests were also different. But a little digging into the speeches revealed a common acknowledgement that Nepal’s politics and the governance of the state have deviated from their path somewhere. <\/p>\n Pushpa Kamal Dahal urged the government to preserve the achievements of inclusive democracy and complete the remaining tasks of the peace process. Shankar Pokhrel of the UML talked about cooperation for democracy, nationality, development and prosperity. Rajendra Lingden of the RPP questioned the disgust towards the political leadership, saying that the attitude has not changed even though the character has changed. Rabi Lamichhane of the Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSP) indicated that the contract of democracy is not with any one party and the people are looking for results rather than speeches. Gagan Thapa said that an ‘open forum’ is needed for questions, dissent and dialogue within the parliament, society and the party. <\/p>\n Although the words of the speech were different, the question was almost the same, we have changed the system, but how much have we changed the behavior of the state in the lives of the citizens? <\/p>\n The future does not run by eating the interest of history<\/strong><\/p>\n There is a lot of history to be proud of. His contribution to the struggle against the Rana regime, the restoration of democracy, the democratic movement and the drafting of the constitution cannot be denied. But history is not a fixed account of the bank, where the grandson can enjoy the interest of the political capital accumulated by his grandfather for eternity. <\/p>\n As Gagan Thapa said, today’s 18-year-old youth can respect the revolution of 2007, but he is looking for a job today. He may know about the movement of 2046, but while working in a government office, there is no need for middlemen today. He may accept the change of 2002\u00f763, but he also questions why the state’s treatment of powerful and ordinary citizens who violate the law is different. This is also the essence of the challenge raised by Ravi Lamichhane, sarcastically referring to the history of the Congress.<\/p>\n It is great to have history, but history cannot provide a permanent defense against the present failure. <\/p>\n What is interesting is that the political report prepared by Gagan Thapa to be presented in the general convention has also admitted that in the last two decades, the Congress has been more focused on position, power, alliance management, division and factionalism than the main objective. It also admits that the tendency to protect oneself from corruption and irregularities has weakened the institutional credibility. Therefore, now the Congress is not only showing a mirror from outside, but the mirror has also been placed in its report. <\/p>\n The Constitution of Nepal does not make a weak promise of social justice and inclusion. Article 18 ensures equality and equal protection in the eyes of law. Article 38 gives women the right to proportional and inclusive participation in all state bodies. Article 40 provides for the constitutional basis for representation, empowerment and special provision for Dalits. Article 42 provides for proportional inclusive participation in women, Dalits, indigenous nationalities, Madhesi, Tharu, Muslims, backward classes, minorities, marginalized, persons with disabilities, farmers, labourers, citizens of backward regions and economically disadvantaged Khas Arya.<\/strong><\/p>\n On paper, the system is attractive. The problem is not that the constitution does not recognize inclusion. The problem is, how subtly does our implementation system recognize the multidimensional deprivation identified by the constitution? This is the question that should be raised by the 15th Congress of the Congress. <\/p>\n Is inclusivity just a reservation? <\/strong> <\/p>\n A convenient equation has become in Nepal’s political debate, reservation equals inclusivity. When it comes to reservation, it is said that you are progressive, if some positions are allocated in percentage, social justice will be achieved. But social justice is not such a cheap concept. <\/p>\n Provision was made to set aside a certain proportion of the posts to be filled through open competition in the civil service for inclusive competition. In this, group share has been fixed for women, indigenous nationalities, Madhesis, Dalits, persons with disabilities and backward areas. The language of the original law also seems to target the ‘economically and socially backward’ persons among women, indigenous nationalities, Madhesis and Dalits. However, the regulations provided that all the people of the concerned group were considered economically and socially backward until the government specified a separate list. <\/p>\n This is where the difficult question begins<\/strong><\/p>\n Can the deprivation of a person from a high-income, well-educated private school and university in Kathmandu, having administrative and financial access for generations, and a person from a family who has hardly studied in a basic school in a remote village of Mugu or Kalikot be measured by a single formula?<\/p>\n The answer is not that caste does not mean anything. Nepal’s historical ethnic, gender and regional exclusion is real. The structural discrimination against Dalits, the problem of representation of Madhes, the low presence of women in the power structure, and the historical question of indigenous peoples cannot be erased by any economic data. But another truth must be admitted: the fact that identity is important does not make class inequality invisible. <\/p>\n Reservation should not be removed, should it be refined or not? Therefore, the question is not whether reservation is needed or not. Nepal has already passed that debate a long time ago. Positive discrimination is a constitutionally accepted judicial instrument. <\/p>\n The question now should be, did the benefits reach the most disadvantaged, or did it refocus on the relatively well-off and accessible families within the same community? <\/p>\n If the same family or social strata takes special opportunities for generations but the poorest person of the same community is to be at the bottom of the line again, then the policy needs to be reviewed. Why not create a multidimensional deprivation index that combines indicators such as identity, economic status, geography, education, family opportunities, social exclusion and disability? <\/p>\n If the Congress calls itself a democratic and centrist party, then it should not run away from such a difficult debate. Both the tendencies of ‘regression’ and distributing the certificate of ‘progressiveness’ without questioning the present form of reservation as soon as the question is raised on reservation are not democratic. <\/p>\n The right question is not to keep the reservation or to remove it, but how to bring justice to the one for whom it is made. <\/p>\n Another misconception that social justice is greater than government jobs should also be dispelled. The debate on inclusion in Nepal has become increasingly focused on government jobs, proportional representation and quotas for party posts. <\/p>\n But for the farmers of Mugu, social justice is not just about being the joint secretary of their caste in the ministry. It means that their children should get quality schools. Pregnant women should be able to reach the hospital on time. Citizens should be able to file a complaint with the police station without knowing them. The poor defendant should get the same quality legal defense as the rich defendant. Bank loans are not available by looking at the political reach of the entrepreneur, but by looking at the feasibility of the project. <\/p>\n The biggest thing is that the law should look at the prime minister, ministers, businessmen, party workers and ordinary citizens on the roadside with the same eye. <\/p>\n The law is not enough for everyone on the books, it should be seen as equal in the affairs of the state. If there is one law for the powerful and another for the powerless, then the preamble of an inclusive constitution does not give much comfort to the citizens. <\/p>\n How long will the two-class Nepal continue?<\/strong> <\/p>\n This is one of the roots of the growing discontent of Nepali society today. Citizens have gradually started seeing society at two levels, with access and not. To govern and to be governed. This is a dangerous sign for a democracy that works on the phone and goes on for months with petitions. <\/p>\n It is not the problem of democracy that the citizens are angry with any party. It is a problem to conclude that all the parties are the same. It is normal to criticize a leader. But the collective belief that ‘no matter who comes, nothing will change’ is a serious warning to the democratic system. <\/p>\n Rajendra Lingden commented that although the characters were changed in the general convention, the trend is the same. The test of the Congress is whether to dismiss it as a satire of the opposition or to make it a material of self-criticism. <\/p>\n Youth Participation: Faces or Rights? <\/strong> <\/p>\n This time, youth participation and generational change has become a major topic in the Congress Congress. Representatives of the Gen-G generation have also said that participation should not be limited to positions and numbers but should be translated into real influence in policy and decision-making. This is very important. <\/p>\n If a 35-year-old person is put on the stage as a youth, the party is not youthful. If the decision to increase the number of women is taken by a small circle of men, then the party will not be inclusive. If we bring in representatives from Dalits, Madhesis, Janajatis or backward areas, then they are limited to the role of applauding the decisions that have already been decided, then it is representation, not power sharing. <\/p>\n The Congress should now change the language of ‘giving opportunities to the youth’. In a democratic party, the youth are not the people who get opportunities by anyone’s grace. It is their right to reach the leadership through merit, competition and the trust of the members. <\/p>\n What will the Congress take out of the convention? <\/strong> <\/p>\n The measure of whether the 15th Congress was successful or not should not be measured only by the result of who won the post of president, vice-president or general secretary. The real measure is whether the Congress can give a clear answer to some difficult questions. <\/p>\n Whether to extend social justice beyond the quota of government appointments, whether to review the reservation system based on facts within a certain period of time, whether to take measures to prevent recurrence of opportunities within the same group, whether to combine economic poverty, geography and social exclusion into a single indicator system, whether to put the youth in the poster of the party or to vote in policy making, whether to make the rule of law equally harsh on its cadres? <\/p>\n The answer to these questions should come in the proposal, the timeline, and the measurable commitment. <\/p>\n After the general convention, if all the leaders return home with four attractive paragraphs of ‘democracy’, ‘prosperity’, ‘social justice’ and ‘inclusion’, then the political achievement of the big gathering at Khula Manch will be small. <\/p>\n Now we need a feeling rather than a slogan <\/strong><\/p>\n Nepal does not lack an inclusive constitution. There is also no dearth of terminology of social justice. In the manifesto of every party, the poor, women, Dalits, Madhesis, indigenous peoples, farmers, workers, youth and backward areas are found. What is not found is the expected change in their lives. <\/p>\n If the 15th Congress of the Congress can accept a simple truth, it will be a great achievement, social justice is not the kindness given to the citizens by the state, but the right of the citizens towards the state. Inclusion is not the mathematics of allocating a few positions, but just access to opportunity, respect and decision-making power. <\/p>\n Gagan Thapa’s generation can claim that there has been a generational change under the leadership of the Congress. But changing age and changing politics are not the same thing. If the new face uses the old structure, the same access, the old protectionism and the same division, it will not be called generational transfer, but only handover of chairs. <\/p>\n Therefore, the most important question of the Congress Congress is not who will be the president. The question is, can the new Congress make the powerful people of Kathmandu and the powerless citizens of Kalikot feel that the state is really equal? <\/p>\n If the clear answer, policy and action plan come out of the general convention, then the fifteenth general convention can be meaningful not only for the Congress but also for the democratic politics of Nepal. Otherwise, the speech in the open forum will end, the flag will be lowered, the leaders will return and the Nepali people will go home again with the same old question, we have become inclusive in the constitution. But where am I in the state? Representatives need to find an answer to this question. <\/p>\n (The author, Advocate Kamal Sapkota, is a legal expert, scholar, researcher and practitioner in Nepal. He is currently the Chairman of Nepal News Bank)<\/strong><\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Advocate Kamal Sapkota The 15th general convention of the Nepali Congress is underway at the Khula Manch in Kathmandu. Although the leadership of Gagan Kumar Thapa was established after the special convention, the dispute with the Sher Bahadur Deuba faction over its legitimacy and political ownership has not been completely resolved. 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