‘Nepali Congress today is not driven by the right values’

Historian Rajesh Gautam is the author of a seminal nine-volume history of Nepal’s democratic movement and Nepali Congress. He has closely followed the Grand Old Party’s tumultuous history since its formation in 1950.

As the parliament’s largest party is in the middle of its Central Working Committee meeting in Kathmandu, the Post’s Thira Lal Bhusal sat down with Gautam for insights on the party’s historical evolution and its current course. Excerpts:

Can you briefly break down the historical evolution of the Nepali Congress?

When we talk about the evolution and role of the Nepali Congress, we have to break down its journey into two major periods. One, from its establishment 1950 up until 1960, when King Mahendra imposed a partyless Panchayat system, until the 1990 democratic changes; and two, the democratic period after 1990. One may further break down the post-1990 democratic period, from 1990 to 2006, and then the republic period to the date. The party’s role has changed depending on the political situation of those periods. Until 1960, the country's politics revolved around the Congress. The party led the revolution in 1951 and won two-thirds seats in the first general elections in 1959.

The struggle at the time was between democrats and monarchy. The Congress led the democratic movement and the king didn’t like it. Then King Mahendra not only dissolved the elected government and parliament but also imposed a party-less autocratic Panchayat system that lasted for three decades. The communist forces also emerged over the years. The people's movement in 1990 was jointly fought by Congress and communist forces. After that Nepalis overthrew monarchy. Now we are in a federal democratic republic system. And the Congress has been a major force in all these movements and has evolved with the changes in the country.
 Reference:
https://kathmandupost.com/interviews/2023/07/23/nepali-congress-today-is-not-driven-by-the-right-values