Are we proud that Asian/African girls are crowned Miss World/Universe?

My recent article on beauty (available below) was read by considerably conscious and learned people and I was lucky to get important feedback. Also the list of the members of the group created in the facebook to further this discourse is getting longer. By now they have exceeded 70. If you are also in the facebook please join and show your solidarity to this effort by joining Oriental Media Discourse Group. Having said this, I would like to give some clarifications about the perception of beauty dealt earlier.

Construction of Beauty: a post-colonial and neo-Marxist discourse

Is beauty a Myth?
It may be very difficult for the people to understand that Beauty is a myth. But, it is indeed solely a myth. Myths differ according to the cultures and beauty can differ from one’s eyes to the others’. So why, Wordsworth said beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. However, even our eyes are deceived. We are preoccupied by myths. Everything we see is framed by these myths and our sights are also guided, even without knowledge. There are important myths about the beauty of both male and female in the contemporary world. In this write-up, I would like to observe beauty myth created by media in light of colonialism and Capitalism.

Facebook, capitalism and the Imperialism

I was hanging around facebook till midnight. I occasionally do so when I have a lot of burden. Actually, facebook is providing me a wonderful place for diversion and also many times, it is a leisure time activity. It is also facilitating my social networks. In fact, I have met many friends with whom I had lost the contacts.

However, the coin has the other side as well, the grimmer and darker side. Many people will be writing about the pros and cons of facebook or similar social networks in the days ahead or some of them are already pursued. Here, I would like to see some of the grim sides of it (actually we always see negative sides better than the other.)

For that, let me begin with some of the comments that I wrote for one of my friend’s picture in facebook:
We are having discourse about encoding and decoding, signifier, signified and signification and denotation and connotation. How are you stuck in the discussion of a spelling error? Look the other way around. And it will become -----(here I had reversed the letter order of the name- deleted for privacy).... Does it have any meaning- maybe but deeper. Look from critical discourse analysis and feminist studies.

In these comments, I invited some serious discourses about how we look the world. What is constructed as beauty, good or elite in this world? To use Roland Barthes’ words, what are the myths that have been naturalized so that we feel them as true and fear questioning them? How are the interests of the bourgeoisie or the dominant class imposed upon us and how do we respond to them? In this era of global capitalism, what are the truths imposed upon us? What are the colonial legacies that we are still used to and what are newly being imposed? These questions obviously seek explanations and it is bestowed upon the scholars to answer them (Of course, the meaning of scholars will have to be deconstructed here to mean for those who are real scholars, not the guards of the dominant ideology.)

Actually, I was inviting my friends to have similar discourses. It was the eve of one of my exams and I was spending the precious moments in facebook! Than one of my friends wrote that Name carries many things and spelling error matters. It was my comment:
I think attachment to name is also seeking identity in the signifier. You know the name (omitted for privacy) doesn't necessarily mean for you. It is just because we understand. If all NOMA Regional Masters Program people begin telling you Indra, you will be Indra. So name is nothing. The person who you are is very important.
You know, that's why, I am not anymore using my family name. It attaches you to certain caste, creed, religion and nationality. I don't want to be bound by these things.

Of course, this question is worth pondering. Here comes Foucault, who told that people don’t have an inherent identity. It is constructed or created. Same is with the name or any other identity we belong to. And, of course it is temporary and changeable. So, I can be identified with any other name in later days. Foucault has the similar view about power. He says power is not possessed, it is exercised. The society or the people give somebody the premises to exercise power. There is optimism in Foucault’s analysis that where there is power, there is resistance.
The discourse that can be linked with my decision to use only given name is contrary to Foucault. Of course, regardless of whatever Foucault said, we can’t live without identity- that is the bottom line. But to tell in Marxist terms, there are two classes in the world- bourgeoisie and proletariat. By not using my family name, I will be free from other attachments like nationality, religion, caste or creed (My given name also comes from Hindu God Indra, but there is the bottom line- I can’t live without identity.) With this decision, it will be easier for me to be identified one among these two classes. Then, I wrapped up the day’s comments and countercomments with the following:
I am indebted to facebook but sorry that it is an example of media imperialism. The owner of facebook is being richer and richer while millions of people across the globe are spending their precious hours hanging around facebook for no good reason. This is the thing we should very seriously think about.

I think this is the most important of the ideas. I want to work separately in the myths about beauty, religion and culture in later days – hopefully they will appear in these pages. Here, I have raised two of the important ideas the imperialism and the economic implications.

The comment speaks many things about imperialism – like televisions and newspapers with global coverage or circulation, the facebook is being one of the few such social networks - we can say there is condition of oligopoly between facebook and myspace (it doesn’t matter if there are a couple of others). They have imperialized the world. They have established that we can’t live without them and that they have the power to show us the path. They are the pioneers and we are the followers.

Each visit by its members is counted in financial terms and world wealth is being accumulated in the hand of a handful of persons. According to Forbes magazine (May, 2008), Facebook has the annual transaction of 5 billion and its CEO made USD 1.5 billion last year. It is unimaginable but possible only in this extreme world imperialized by the West and ruled by global capitalism. This is not being envious because Mark Zuckerberg makes USD 1.5b a year but that how the money is and can be accumulated in a few hands. It is obvious in any other businesses as well but it is, conventionally, no business at all. As Zuckerberg makes so big money, millions of people across the world are starving to death and suffering from malnutrition. Possibly, soon there will be time the capitalism will have to answer these questions- how long a few people can live happily when their fellow human beings are starving to death?

Here, I would like to deal with another economic implication. I have seen many friends and even fallen myself victim to such trend of spending hours and hours in facebook without genuine cause. I guess millions of people are falling victim to such trend and the precious hours that could be spent in many other creative works are wasted. Thus, in economic terms, there can be two possible meanings of facebook trend- to the one hand world wealth is being accumulated in a few hands while many others are deprived of economic activities because they devote these hours for facebook.

There are dozens other negative effects - the cultural implication can’t be exaggerated which I wish to write in later days. I will expect my friends to come up with their wonderful ideas. To borrow Stuart Hall, we will find meaning through discourse.

Let's Redefine Media discourses

Dear Friends,

The Oriental Civilization is no less richer than the Western civilization which is dominant across the world these days. Many Western values have been guiding us through in our daily lives. For the last five hundred years or more explicitly since the Renaissance in Europe, they have gone far ahead. They ruled the world in terms of military power followed by the global expansion of market resulted from the industrial revolution.

However, the globalization and explicit cultural intrusion of the West in the Oriental cultures came after the Second World war. We have been injected the virus of so-called modernity, demolished or forgotten our cultural values and beliefs. Media as the agent of 'modernization' are at the top. The global expansion of news agencies, advent and expansion of 24/7 news channels since the 1990s, globalization of media ownership, market and content have largely contributed in promoting the world order which is vertical from West to East and North to South.

Though, there have become some efforts to bring about balance in this vertical flow if Information and cultural products, they have been less than enough. It may be an ideal period in the history to redefine our Eastern standards as the Eurocentric Western philosophy (And in the latter days, US Centric) is falling apart. And the world is turning to Asia, Africa and the Latin America- to India, China, Singapore, South Africa, Venezuela and Cuba. However, the odd is that when the West is turning to the East, we are just following their olden trends and trying to 'modernize' ourselves. This is ridiculous, impeaching and an impediment to the self development.

So, through this blog, I would like to invite the intelligentsia for the renewed discourses in Oriental philosophy and particularly globalization of media and cultural production.

Dhaka, November 14, 2008

A Critical Assesment of Theories in Gender Development*

1. Understanding Sex and Gender

Many People confuse and mistake the term gender with sex. Some think that these two are interchangeable words. However, they are distinct. Sex refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that make us male or female. Sex differences can be defined as differences on genetic or anatomical composition and function. According to Stewart et. al. (2003:3) although biological sex is important, recent researches have shown that men and women have relatively few attributes of behavior or communication which are innate and are determined by our biological sex.’ The sex is almost common in any animals in the world- male and female.

Gender is however socio cultural construction that makes us man or woman. In fact, the socio-cultural definition of man-like and woman-like behavior form our gender. Unlike sex, gender is specific and unique to human beings. It refers to the social construction of masculinity and femininity. Stewart et. al. (2003:4) have defined gender as ‘what culture makes out of raw material of biological sex.’

First Update from Dhaka

I wonder why I could not make even a single entry in the last three months. Especially, as I arrived Dhaka on September 2, I should have mentioned about that. It marked a shift in my life. Back in Nepal, I was a Communications Officer of a reputed NGO and Lecturer in two prominent colleges in Kathmandu. I took the decision of giving up these all the perky jobs to achieve something and flew to Dhaka to join Regional Masters in Journalism, Media and Communication. It is a regional program jointly launched by Dhaka University (Bangladesh), Oslo University (Norway), College of Journalism and Mass Communication (Kathmandu, Nepal) and University of Punjab (Lahore, Pakistan). We are 26 students, six from Nepal and the rest from Bangladesh.
My experience in Dhaka is really different to what I thought it may be like before I came here. There are a lot of good people who really love Nepal and Nepalese. Too many people in the streets and many beggars sometimes create nuisances. It is far hotter than Kathmandu and the food habit is different, luckily rice and dal makes the main food. After nearly two months, we are happily settled in the International hall of the University. In the hall, we feel like home because nearly 50 Nepalese students are staying here and students operate their own mess.
The University of Dhaka is an ideal place to study. The University established in 1921 bears the pride and was known as 'Oxford of the East'. It is the residential University and majority number of nearly 35,000 students stay in the residential Halls. Most of the teachers of the University and especially in the Department of Mass Communication and Journalism are well qualified, learned and trained and the teafching styles they employ are interactive. Virtue or sin of Dhaka is that it is like the centre of pirated books. Far more variety of books than in Kathmandu are found in very cheaper price. I hope to collect a lot of books in media studies and take them back home after completing two years of study.
Stay in Dhaka or any part of Bangladesh is cheaper. That's why many Nepalese students choose this destination graduate and Post graduate courses especially in medicine, pharmacy, engineering and other faculties. Rickshaws make inevitable part of life here. It is sometimes difficult for those who came from relatively opener society like of ours because Bangladesh is somehow closed society and even drinking is prohibited.
In these two years, I am trying to see the images of South Asia that the global media are showing to the rest of the world. Globalization of news, stereotyping, othering and common practices in the South Asia are my areas of interest in media studies while Gender also significantly attracts me.
I hope to upload my articles about media studies in the separate blog mediadiscourses.blogspot.com. Please keep visiting it as well.

Covering Bhutto's death in Nepal's news room

Dec 28, 2007
It was 6.30 pm. As usual, I was working at International Bureau. We were rushing for the day's Prime News Bulletin at 7 pm. This is an hourly bulletin and the international bureau has to prepare at least four stories. I had already done stories on likely release of Columbia's former vice Presidential candidate Clara Roja, Japanese Prime Minister arriving China and six French nationals convicted in Chad. We were rushing for updates on Nigeria fire and Kenya election.
During our job, we generally rely on scripts from Reuters as my station has subscribed to it. (We don't have reporter in any country abroad.) However, we verify facts through other websites including bbcnews.com and ptinews.com.
Suddenly, I happened to see at BBC that there was blast on Bhutto's election campaign. I went through that. Looking some other Indian news portals, I became sure about the blast. I shared the news with other desk people. I was trying to push for breaking news, though; my station carries very less breaking news from international front.
Friends suggested that prime news is running just after an hour. It is better to run that time. It was OK. Some of my friends began monitoring Indian Televisions. (Our cable operator doesn't provide us Pakistan's Dawn TV. I don't think much use of watching government owned PTV World. ) No sooner, somebody said that Bhutto was dead. It was India's NDTV to tell us about her death.
I strongly stopped the news from going breaking. I said I have to verify the news. But now, I think I stopped because I had strong sympathy for Bhutto. She is the daughter of Julfikar Ali Bhutto, whose execution brought historical change in Nepal. In 1989, Nepalese students protested against his killing in Kathmandu. Police suppressed the demonstrations that prompted into further protests. Eventually, the movement forced the then party less government of Nepal to declare referendum to choose between party less system or multiparty democracy.
However, other Indian channels also confirmed her death. I was so sorry, but the story was right. To catch the audience, we decided to run special episode on her death. All program schedules were cancelled. And we rushed for it.
Reuters doesn't feed any more scripts. Other online news portals are also not giving the information we needed.
Interview was the best way. We began calling prominent journalists who were expert in Pakistan affairs. That released us from feeding scripts and new information all the while. By the time, we went on gathering her biography and reactions across the world as well as development in Pakistan. To fill the news holes, we called the leaders of prominent party leaders in Nepal to react over the incident.
Thus we made live broadcast of more than three hours on Bhutto's death. It was as late as midnight when I reached home, very much disturbed.
As I review the performance the next day, I wonder how we were able to do three hours episode without anybody to give us primary information about the event, none of the reporters on the site or even in the country. All the visuals based on Reuters feed. Reuters was also not feeding the desired visuals. It was many times relaying visuals from Pakistan's Dawn News TV. Still we did and it was not bad.

Blogging in Nepal: Setting New Standards in Freedom of Speech and Expression

Introduction:
Blogging roots its origin to weblog. With the rapid advancement in information and Communication Technology (ICT), every individual felt like Communicating through it. To meet those demands, some companies began providing mailboxes to individuals, in most cases, free of cost. Earlier, this phenomenon was used for exchanging mails, which came to be known as e-mail, i.e. electronic mail. However, this couldn't quench people's thirst for more effective and faster communication with large number of people at once, not only with those in the mailing list. As the old saying lays- necessity gives birth to invention, a phenomenon was born i.e. weblog. It is purely a 21st century phenomenon of journalism.

Nepal government goes heavy on defaulters

Passports of the defaulters to be seized and barred from transferring ownership or selling their fixed asset.
In an attempt to recover more than 32 billion rupees defaulted bank loan, the government has decided to seize the passports of all blacklisted willful defaulters. The government has also decided to bar them from transferring ownership of or selling their fixed assets.

The Rastra Bank had published the name of 53 willful defaulters this August who had defaulted more than 25 billion rupees from two government owned banks of the country Nepal Bank Limited and Rastriya Banijya Bank. However, the number will rise to nearly six dozens when this policy will be implemented initially for businessmen defaulting more than Rs 50 million.
Now, many top businesspersons from big business houses will be restricted from flying abroad or selling their property. However, blacklisted defaulters will be allowed to sell their fixed assets for the purpose of servicing their outstanding debts.
It seems like that the government has decided to go tough against those defaulters. It has also endorsed a seven-point plan of action to pressurize defaulters to pay their loan liability. As per the plan of action, those businessmen will be losing their credit and debit banking cards. They will also be barred from assuming the position of director or promoter of any company. They would not be allowed even to register a new company. Likewise, treasury bills and savings certificates owned by defaulters will be used only for repaying their loan liabilities. Defaulters are also prohibited from receiving medals and decorations provided by the state, and will not be awarded any public position.
Nepal government was widely criticized for not taking action against those willful defaulters. There were speculations that the government could not initiate action as many ‘renowned’ industrialists including Chairman of the Federation of Nepalese Chamber of Commerce and Industries Chandi Raj Dhakal were also in the list. Dhakal’s Company Momento Apparels is the Fifth largest defaulter. (See: Evils of the nation: Top Ten defaulters uncovered )
The government has blacklisted 1,917 borrowers as willful defaulters whose outstanding debt amounts to nearly 32.23 billion by the end of fiscal year 2005/06.
However, there are doubts on the success of such policies. In response to government decision to publish the name of 53 large willful defaulters, the business community had organized a day’s nation wide protest on last September. In the scenario that such attempts have failed in past, there are questions whether this transitional government will not bow before those industrialists which are the perennial source on income for the political parties.
This article originally appeared on Everest Uncensored Blog on October 31, 2006. 

Forgotten and forgiven evils: Top ten Corrupt Politicians

Both sides agree to adopt policy to severely punish people amassing properties by means of corruption while remaining in government posts.”
The above mentioned lines are from Clause 3.11 of the Comprehensive Peace Accord signed by the Nepal government and the Maoists on November 21. On those lines, both the sides have expressed their commitments to severely punish those corrupts. However, the latest developments from politics to judiciary are proving that those words also may just be the high rhetoric. Both the sides have failed to convince people that they are really serious on punishing those evils. Some people have taken this as a commitment to punish those remaining in government posts during the Royal regime, while others have taken this just as a tool to eyewash the general public.

As time passes, it is human nature that the people forget and forgive the crime of anyone. Nepal’s Ranas who amassed billions of property from the state are still enjoying the state privileges at other parts of the world and even within the country with that money. Then the Palace coteries amassed billions and billions of rupees. That too, is forgotten and forgiven after the fall of Panchayat. Those corrupts were totally forgiven when a Judicial Inquiry Commission on Property, headed by Supreme Court Justice Bhairab Prasad Lamsal was formed some four years back. The Lamsal Commission submitted its report recommending strong action against some 2,000 persons remaining in the government posts after the restoration of democracy. Now too, the political system of the country has changed and it seems like that the corrupts of the multiparty democracy era will also be forgotten and forgiven any day; setting example that Nepal is the state of impunity. None will be punished.
The Everest Uncensored has been trying uncovering such evils to remind people so that at least they could point their fingers to them and say, you are enjoying with our money and some day, you will be brought to the book and punished.
In this series, the Everest Uncensored tries to uncover the top ten corrupt politicians and what sort of political and social privilege they have been enjoying. As many of those evils are the members of the House of Representatives and National Assembly, they have secured their position in the interim legislature as well as per the Seven Party Alliance (SPA) and Maoist agreement. Thus the Nepalese are still not being free from those evils. Prospects loom large those evils may try to fish in the troubled water, taking advantage of the ongoing transition.
1. Chiranjibi Wagle
It is the single and record case ever in the history of Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority on which a prominent political figure was proved corrupt by the court. Wagle remained in key positions after Multi Party democracy. He is still a member of House of Representatives from Gorkha-1 so that his position is secured in the interim legislature as well. He was the Minister for Land Reforms and Management; during Krishna Prasad Bhattrai’s cabinet. He was Minister for Supplies in the cabinet headed by Girija Prasad Koirala in 1990 and Minister for Information and Communication in the cabinet headed by Sher Bahadur Deuba in 1996. He was also deputy to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba in 2002. He was one of the key members to instigate Deuba on dividing the Nepali Congress in 2002.

Wagle was fined Rs.27.3 million and given a two-and-a-half-year prison sentence by a special court. The Commission for the investigation of Abuse of Authority accused Wagle of misappropriating over Rs.30 million by using his clout to bolster his son’s travel and trekking business, and of making false declarations about his assets. The court also ordered that the property Wagle had acquired illegally be confiscated.

This was the first time in Nepal that action was taken against such a senior political leader. However, Wagle has been enjoying the dilly dally of Nepalese Judicial system. He immediately filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court which released him on bail. And now Wagle has begun to appear in the front of political arena. Though he resigned from the post of Party vice President, he is still the Ceotral Committee member of Nepali Congress (Democratic). Wagle, once a key member to divide Nepali Congress, is now forcing Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba to unite with Nepali Congress. Maybe, he is looking for another shield to conceal his misappropriated property.
(Pics: Wagle is seen talking to journalists in both the pitures. Two pictures carry two opposite meanings. At the pictures at left he is talking to the journalists at his residence in capacity of a Minister whereas on the next he is talking to journalists at the premise of CIAA after recording his statement,)
2. Govinda Raj Joshi
Govinda Raj Joshi was the Minister for Water Resources in Krishna Prasad Bhattrai cabinet in 2000. He was the Home Minister in the caretaker cabinet headed by Girija Prasad Koirala. He served as Minister for Education twice in 1991 and 1996.

Protecting Corrupts: Joshi is still close aide of Girija Prasad Koirala. So why Koirala can’t be spared from the allegations that he has protected corrupts and institutionalised corruption.
Joshi was supposed to have been involved in many scams. He was supposed to have benefited millions while publishing the result of the permanent teachers which was later annulled by the court. The CIAA had charged him of embezzling 3.93 million rupees. The CIAA sought a 13-year imprisonment, seizure of all illegal property and a penalty equal to the property he had amassed.
To the best of Joshi, the special court has acquitted him of all those charges. The CIAA petition has been quashed by the Special court. The court took the decision even without entering the facts, just for a reason that the case was not filed within the timeframe. The Special Court judges Bhupadhwaj Adhikari, Komal Nath Sharma and Cholendra Shumsher Rana in their ruling have said that the case filed against Joshi did not even draw the attention of the court to enter the “facts” to make a verdict.
He is still a central member of Nepali Congress, and close aide of Girija Prasad Koirala. Joshi reserves the position in the interim legislature as he represents Tanahu-1 at the House of Representatives. May be, again people may reiterate his name as a Minister some day again.
3. Khum Bahadur Khadka
Khadka has also assumed many key positions in the governments after the Multi Party democracy. He was another key figure on instigating Deuba for Nepali Congress faction. He was Minister for Housing and Physical Planning; and Local Development in Krishna Prasad Bhattrai Cabinet in 2000. He was Minister for Works and Transport in the cabinet headed by Girija Prasad Koirala in 1991, Minister for Home in the cabinet headed by Sher Bahadur Deuba in 1996 and Minister for Supplies in the cabinet headed by Girija Prasad Koirala in 1998. Khadka also has the reserved position in the interim legislature as he is the member of House of Repreesentatives from Dang-1. He assumed the portfolio of Home Ministry in Deuba cabinet in 2002.

The CIAA has filed several cases against this political player from western Nepal. However, Khadka has got the clean chit from the court. The recent verdict of his acquittal by the special court has come under controversy. A three-member bench comprising chairman of the Special Court, Bhupadhoj Adhikari, and members Komal Nath Sharma and Cholendra Shumsher Rana had given clean chit to Khadka. The CIAA had charged him of embezzling 23.6 million rupees illegally during his tenure as the minister. (Pic: Khadka, once the powerful Home Minister is seen under police custody at the picture)
Khadka had got clean chit in the separate case as well. The CIAA had accused Khadka of embezzling Rs 40.5 million while awarding a work of Bakraha River Control Project to China Henan Company. However, the special court had acquitted him.
Khadka, once a key member to divide Nepali Congress, has now returned to the Nepali Congress, severing his ties with the Sher Bahadur-Deuba-led NC (Democratic); and is seen making gracious presence in the central Committee meetings of the Nepali Congress.
4. Rabindra Nath Sharma

The hard liner Royalist and Panchayat minister Rabindra Nath Sharma leads the list among the corrupt politicians. He has assumed the port folio of Finance Minister multiple times during Panchayat and after Multi party Democracy as well. The CIAA has charged Sharma of embezzling 41.5 million rupees. His case is under review at the Special court. However, there are speculations that he will also be acquitted in the same ground as the to former Ministers duo Khadka and Joshi were.
Sharma had become notorious for his speech at the public account Committee of House of Representatives in 1998 where he had readily accepted that the corruption and smuggling continued in the past, is still continued and will continue in the future as well.
After Royal takeover in February 2005, Sharma panel firmly supported the move. The group along under the leadership of another diehard Royalist and the then Home Minister Kamal Thapa forcefully captured the Rastriya Prajatantra Party. After the election Commission denied to recognize Kamal Thapa led faction, they have separately formed Rastriay Prajatantra Party Nepal and Sharma holds the dignified position of the Chairman. In recent days he has begun to claim position in the interim legislature and the government as well.
5. Kamal Thapa
This diehard Royalist since Panchayat era made a dramatic move in the multiparty democracy. He jumped into the Rastriya Prajatantra Party which was initially formed as an alliance of the Royal loyals. Thapa went on making playing his card game and succeeded on being minister for multiple times.

After Royal takeover in February 1, 2005, Thapa changed his skin and kneeled before the King. As a result, he was able to resume the portfolio of the Home Minister in the Royal cabinet. Though he hasn’t been charged and convicted yet, he was notorious for 500 thousand rupees pocket money during his latest tenure as Home Minister. There were reports that he took the money every day during the staged municipal polls and later in people’s uprising, which didn’t need any receipts and place of expenditure. He is supposed to have been embezzling millions of rupees alone during this tenure; let alone his previous tenures.
After Royal takeover in February 2005, Thapa, along with other most tainted men Padma Sundar Lawoti and Rabindranath Sharma forcefully captured the Rastriya Prajatantra Party. After the election Commission denied to recognize the faction, they have separately formed Rastriaya Prajatantra Party Nepal and Thapa resigned as its chairman, paving way for no less corrupt Sharma.
6. Tarini Datta Chataut and Lauda Scam
He is the prominent personality behind Lauda scam that ever in the Nepalese parliamentary history made the House to continuously postpone for 57 days and finally end without single parliamentary session. Exactly from the point Nepalese parliamentary system lost people’s faith which finally paved the way for Royal takeover in 2002.
Chataut, the then Minister for Tourism and civil aviation, was charged of illegally operating and benefiting from the most infamous Lauda air procurement deals. The CIAA had claimed that the lease led to a direct loss of the RNAC of over 389 million and that should be compensated from the convicts. The case reached the Patan appellate court from where he was released in a bail of 2.1 million rupees. The case, after the establishment of Special court to look after the corruption cases, was transferred to special court. The Special court is yet to give verdict on the most infamous case. The delay on delivering verdict on such case is taken as a failure of the Special court. The speculations behind such delay are that the case also involves the then Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala who is the key figure in the national politics so far.
Chataut was supposed to be the close mate of Girija Prasad Koirala. He was also initially proposed as the Speaker in the House of Representatives which was later bagged by Taranath Ranabhat. The political debate was ignited when there were reports that the then Prime Minister Koirala hid him in his official residence when Patan Appellate court had ordered him to be present before the court.
(Pic: Chataut talking to journalists after recording his statement at the CIAA regarding Lauda scam.)
The far westerner Chataut is Still an MP and reserves a position at the Interim legislature. And still is an influential leader inside Nepali Congress.
7. Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta

This multiple time Minister was notorious not only for embezzling the state funds, but also curbing the media during his tenure as the Minister for Information and Communications. He was who barred the FM stations from broadcasting the News which was later followed to the best by the Royal regime.
CIAA accused Gupta of making more than Rs.30 million through illegal telecommunication deals, unlawful procurement of mobile phone sets and wrongful renewing of cinema licenses during his tenure. He was also charged and acquitted in a deal with the Kantipur Television Network for clearing the security bund of 25 million rupees.
This guy was a Congressman. As the Minister in Deuba cabinet, he was one of those who incited Deuba to divide party. However, later he became uncertain whether to follow Deuba too. That’s why he has taken the other communal slogan now. He has formed a party named Madheshi Jana Adhikar forum and is busy doing the communal politics. Still, gupta, as a member of House of Representatives from Saptari – 1, reserves position in the interim legislature.
8. Bijaya Gachchhedar
Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar served lately as Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation in Deuba government in 2002. He assumed same port folio in Krishna Prasad Bhattrai cabinet in 2000. He served as Minister for Information and Communication in 1992 and Minister for Works and Transport in 1996. As others Gachhadar also reserves a position in the interim legislature as a member of House of Representatives from Sunsari-2.
As the Minister in Deuba cabinet, Gachchhedar was also one among those who incited Deuba to divide party. Hence, he was able to reserve the post of Joint General Secretary of Nepali Congress (Democratic). Now, in line with other corrupts including Chiranjibi Wagle and Bal Bahadur KC, Gachchhedar is pressuring Deuba for Party unification with Nepali Congress.

(Partners in crime: Gachhadar and Shrestha host a press Conference)
Here is an excerpt from a 1999 issue of a weekly that helps us find how notorious could have he been:
Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation Bijaya Kumar Gachchhedar has been contacting various power centres to cover up his wrong doings. Gachchedar has been charged for taking financial benefit during his tenure as Minister for Works and Transportation. Presently, he has been charged for supporting and helping international smuggler.
News source says the INTERPOL has also been trying to arrest Gachchhedar. Similarly, an international gang has been threatening him that they would reveal all his past history if they don’t get the money demanded by them. Nevertheless Gachchedhar’s dark secrets have already been revealed.
(See: Khabarkagaj, Thursday, August 19, 1999)
9. Radha Krishna Mainali
This hard liner Communist who once raised arms against the establishment in 1971 and suffered many years in prison dramatically changed his stance and became the icon of feudal system. He was the leader of Left Front that co worked with the Nepali Congress to make the 1990 movement a success. His role on this movement was lauded. With the legacy of Jhapa uprising, he was elected at the House of Representatives multiple times and as an influential leader inside the Party, assumed the port folio of various ministries as well. However, his close aides had already begun to find rift on his stances. The party leaders and cadres were already skeptic about his activities. He was interrogated by Lamsal Judicial Commission on property followed by a CIAA investigation for amassing property illegally.

(Royalty and the Loyalty: Mainali follows King Gyanendra at an inaugural function.)
Fed up with his diminishing influence inside the party, Mainali turned a royalist in latter years and subsequently was able to be appointed Education Minister in King’s cabinet. He was in the forefront on defaming the political parties during his 15 months term as the Minister. After the success of people’s uprising 2006, Mainali is seen nowhere. However, there are possibilities that he may, any day in the future, come out in the political arena as the Panchayat heroes changed their skin during multi Party democracy.
10. Gopal Man Shrestha
Gopal Man Shrestha was proposed as the candidate for Deputy Prime Minister in present government led by Girija Prasad Koirala. He has assumed the portfolios of Minister for Commerce, Forest and Soil Conservation and lately as the Minister for Physical planning and works in the current government.

Khanal-Rojin and Turpentine case shook the parliament in 2002. On the recommendation of CIAA the then minister for Forest and Soil Conservation Shrestha along with his State Minister Surendra Hamal, was fired for taking a bribe for approving a file of Khanal-Rojin and Turpentine Ltd.
Shrestha also reserves his position in the interim legislature as the member of House of Representatives from Syangja-2. He is also the vice President of Nepali Congress Democratic.
Shrestha has however succeeded on improving his public figure to some extent. During Party President Deuba’s imprisonment at the custody of Royal Commission for Corruption Control, he played an active role on behalf of Deuba during talks with the Maoists. He also actively participated in the people’s uprising 2006. There haven’t been any incidents of corruption reported during his current tenure.
None the Royal Ministers and the King’s coteries can’t be spared off this list. Those may include Satshitshumsher, Sharadchandra Shah, Ramesh Nath Pandey and hundreds others who have been embezzling state property since ages. There are as many as hundred politicians in the list of Everest Uncensored who have deceived the people who elected them to the parliament and paved way to the government. They have not only amassed huge property but also formed alliances with the Royalists to defame the multi party democracy. Such politicians are somehow more protected by Nepali Congress who still enjoy privileged position in the Nepali Congress. President Girija Prasad Koirala, though he succeeded on making King bow down before the public, is still protecting such corrupts. It was his tenure in the past which was full of many scams and he ever remained dumb towards such events. People say Koirala is not a corrupt. But people can’t forgive him as an institutionalizer of corruption.
The number is higher in Nepali congress Democratic. The Rastriya Prajatantra Party has very few people without the stains of corruption or illegal deeds. The CPN UML has also never been serious towards interrogating its comrades if how they could amass such large property.
In the given scenario, people are only hopeful about the Maoists. But they have also failed to assure the people. People have taken the extortion drive in the latter days as an indication to show how much the Maoists loved money. People don’t have much expectation with the Maoists either. However, the Maoists can only benefit from people’s sentiment that they hated corruption.
(This article is just an attempt to see the patterns of political corruption in the country. The persons in the list may not exactly fall on the same serial or more corrupt people might have been missed. )
This article originally appeared on Everest Uncensored Blog on November 29, 2006.