In a bistro in Baneshwar on Saturday morning, a young man was sitting playing on his mobile phone. He was probably watching a YouTube channel on his phone. While watching the channel, every now and then he would smile and every now and then his face would darken. After a while, his friend came and asked, 'What does your YouTube astrology say?' He placed the mobile phone on the table and replied with a smile - what does it say?

I don't even have any enemies. But, he says, 'All your enemies will be defeated. It says you will become a millionaire in just seven days. However, that means that the suit has not been met yet.'' Deep disappointment spread on his face. He told his friend, "After persuading Baa, he mortgaged the real estate in the cooperative and got five lakh rupees to go for foreign employment. It has been two months since I paid Rs.350,000 to the agent. When will the visa fall, it is not immediate....'

This is not a movie dialogue. In the slums near the Tribhuvan Airport, such youths are found in thousands of restaurants and bistros. They are waiting for visa. Visa is available anywhere: Dubai, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Palau, Mauritania. However, there is no guarantee that the visa will come. It can come in a week. It may take a year. Even if the government gives permission to go abroad for employment, no one takes a guarantee. How many have run away after closing the shutters of the manpower company that opened Bagrelti with the permission of the government. How many can escape. It has become a commentary that anything can happen here in Nepal. How long will this human predicament last? No one can say. The government cannot take responsibility for this situation. The government has limited itself only to the level of allowing the opening of manpower companies and publishing the details of the amount earned from foreign employment. In plain language, the government and manpower companies are working in partnership. The political leadership has been protecting that partnership. Everyone knows that such companies cannot run without political patronage.

Changes are happening in the world. Small changes are always happening in Nepal as well. The independent Panchayat, which was led by the king for two decades, was also reformed, after 2036 years. Then the people's movement of 2046 against the 'reformed' non-partisan panchayat system brought together the king and the parliament on the basis of mutual consent. However, this change was not effective. The Bhardars, who were the advisers of the king, began to take back the king's 'subtle rights'. On the other hand, under the leadership of political parties including Nepali Congress and Nepal Communist Party (UML), 'Laghutabhash' emerged. From 2046 to 2056, over the course of a decade, the relationship between the King and Parliament began to deteriorate. After the victory of the Nepali Congress in the parliamentary elections held in 2048, the then General Minister of the Congress, Girija Prasad Koirala, who had the opportunity to lead the government unanimously, announced the mid-term elections with the aim of resolving the power politics dispute within the party. Prime Minister Koirala thought that a single leadership will be established in the party and parliament after the elections. Contrary to his expectations, the Congress was badly defeated in the elections. Even the main opposition party Nepal Communist Party (UML) could not get the clear majority needed to form the government. The position of Rashtriya Prajatantra Party, an organization of panchayat leaders, improved a lot.

Anyway, after the 2051 mid-term elections, a minority government was formed under the leadership of UML president Manmohan Adhikari. The Nepali Congress filed a case against it in the Supreme Court saying that the dissolution of the parliament by this government was not in accordance with the constitution. The Supreme Court rejected the dissolution of Parliament. Soon after the no-confidence motion was passed, the officer was relieved of his post. After that, a coalition government consisting of the Rashtriya Prajatantra Party was formed under the leadership of Sher Bahadur Deuba, the leader of the Congress parliamentary party.

In parallel, the violent 'people's movement' of the Maoists, who were establishing themselves as the third force in Nepali politics, began. Why and how did this political situation come about? So far this mystery has not been opened. 

The people thought that the economic, social and political situation of the country would improve after the 2048 elections, but it did not happen. The people's movement ended the direct rule of the king. However, the economic, social and political conditions could not be improved as per the wishes of the people. The reason for this was that the ruling class under the active leadership of the king did not end. Even in the multi-party democratic system, they were still present in Dadu-Paniun of the state. The restoration of multi-party system was very happy for the class known as 'Bhardars' of Kathmandu. They had a strong 'jakad' in the parliament. The so-called 'professionals' had more influence than the political leadership in the government's policy-making, implementation and management. However, none of the citizens who devoted their lives to awakening the light of democracy in the country, the moneylenders, the political workers who supported and helped the people in their sorrows and joys, had access to that level of policy-making and implementation. They moved to the shore. Their work was limited to showing presence in the programs celebrated in the party, eating tea and biscuits and cheering the leaders. Not only the Congress and the UML, none of the other parties saw the need to involve their activists in the administration. It was natural for the party leadership to be blind when the workers who could maintain coordination between the people and the government were kept aside.   

After this, the government handed over the responsibility of policy-making, financial management and implementation to those who prefer to call themselves 'professionals'. Foreign assistance was needed to pay the expensive 'salary' of the so-called professionals. At that time, one by one experts appeared in Nepal. New concepts of development started to be conceived. The 'planners' did not pay attention to the basic needs of the people like agricultural development, animal husbandry, rural roads connecting one village to another. For the development of a small country like Nepal, fundamentally wrong plans were chosen. In terms of evaluation, what is the status of the various plans that started at that time? It is necessary to study it. Let's look at the two development projects adjacent to the country's capital. In what condition are the Bagmati Improvement Project and Melamchi Water Supply Project?

Certainly, the leaders of Nepal cannot be called anti-development. Nor can their intentions be doubted. There is no basis to say that their work is completely wrong. It's just that, after coming into the circle of power, they were surrounded by the circle of narrow selfishness that 'instills a little greed' in their minds and for that, 'makes them commit a little sin'. It was not easy for the leaders and people who were stuck in the circle of traditionalism to break that circle. Political leaders may have wanted some happiness for themselves and their families. They did not even play politics to survive. However, the thirst for that 'little bit' was awakening in them. The system that has been playing for power for centuries has turned politics into a 'business'. An unprecedented change was also seen in the political workers of all parties after they started connecting with the big 'businessmen' who were active invisibly. 

The People's War initiated by Nepal Communist Party (Maoist) was becoming very influential in the early days. Maoist activists and supporters were eager to bring about revolutionary changes in the country. At the same time, Nepal is going through a transition period after the murder of King Birendra's family, Gyanendra Shah's accession to the throne, his brutal dictatorship and the second people's movement. Meanwhile, the Maoists are more 'democratic' than the Parliamentary Congress and the multi-party People's Communists. The Maoists, who stood strongly for change first in the war and later in the movement, have come out with the conclusion that nothing can be done until the power is in their hands. This is also unfortunate: the 'third' power, which was once the savior of poor Nepalis, is now failing itself.