My Republica

Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The contributor for Republica.
news@myrepublica.com

Riddles of electoral democracy

Published On: May 4, 2020 04:05 PM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The ongoing wrangling within the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) has brought to fore the question of relationship between statecraft and citizenship. In the near history, one of the key indicators to cement this relationship has been the voting process as part of what could be termed as electoral democracy. The replacement that we have witnessed after 1990 oscillated among the parties and gave rise to the new legitimacy of voting system therein.

Your ‘rightful’ place

Published On: March 19, 2020 09:39 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Division along ideological lines is one of the important markers in contemporary Nepali society. People often box each other under various groups based on party, caste, ethnic, regional and gender lines. Along with these, people are also categorized under professional categories such as the generic terminology of technocrats. It is interesting to note the conspicuous absence of independent or autonomous individual/s or groups. If someone claims to be so, s/he could become a matter of laughing stock.

Don’t blame the animals

Published On: February 27, 2020 10:16 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Diseases come and go. When it emerges as deadly and sinister it completely rubs out the human life. Throughout human history the outbreak of diseases has ruptured and paralyzed everyday normalcy of humankind resulting in terror, tragedies, miseries and human suffering. At the present juncture, one of our closest neighbors China (and other nations)—a country inheriting the oldest civilizational past and an aspiring global power—is suffering and struggling with disease outbreak.

Living in turbulent times

Published On: December 4, 2019 11:39 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

We often hear people say that Nepal has been passing through transition. In fact, the country has witnessed multiple of them. In the last seven decades the country has gone through major changes owing to both endogenous and exogenous factors.This has led to a situation which can be described as troubled times where people are caught between multiple hopes and despair. The multiplicity of the change and its pace forces people to adapt to new forms of coping strategies.

Reviving trust in judiciary

Published On: October 22, 2019 01:30 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Onus of cultivating public trust in judiciary lies on professionals engaged in justice delivery process. Institutional capability of justice delivery is a core component in shaping that trust

Derailing justice

Published On: August 27, 2019 01:25 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Transitional Justice (TJ) is once again hogging the news lines following the run-off-the-mill discussions among the political leaders to agree on the leadership of the bodies constituted to look into war-era cases. But what will the appointment do? Who is the appointment for? Given that TJ remains a delicate thread in the power balance within the corridors of Singha Durbar, it is clear that the appointment will be made to facilitate the existing power structure rather than make it victim-friendly. One needs to examine the nature of engagement of various stakeholders in the process.

To do or not to do

Published On: June 17, 2019 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

It is necessary for media outlets to enforce strong fact-checking mechanism by involving all the relevant stakeholders of the newsroom

‘Dukhhas’ of Nepali migration

Published On: April 10, 2019 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

For Janak Raj Sapkota, notion of dukhha is engrained in entire mobility process and migrants are in a Catch-22 situation as they can neither return to their village nor live in their new set-up

Trajectory of history writing

Published On: February 4, 2019 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

As Nepal stands at cross-roads of history, it would be helpful if our historiography moved beyond linear narratives

Reassessing Panchayat

Published On: December 27, 2018 01:30 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The political culture of Nepali state is deeply imbued in the shadows of its Panchayati past. Panchayat has had overwhelming presence in Nepali psyche

Watching the watchdog

Published On: November 15, 2018 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Absence of good mentoring in journalism schools or within the newsrooms has failed to create new breeds of journalists with knack for news

No more crawling

Published On: September 16, 2018 12:15 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Departments under Tribhuvan University are often chided for their inability to spur academic environment. But the separated Central Departments of Sociology and Anthropology seem to be doing otherwise. Just last week Central Department of Anthropology (CDA) organized its annual Dor Bahadur Bista memorial lecture which was delivered by Prof Dilli Ram Dahal.

Politics of prohibition

Published On: July 3, 2018 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

What is the need for the government to declare a no-go area for peaceful protests and prohibit spaces located at the heart of the city?

Keep a close tab

Published On: May 28, 2018 12:30 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Communist unification has created unease among those affected by Maoist violence

Misplaced narrative

Published On: April 9, 2018 12:32 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The ability to deal with India has been an important source of legitimacy for both bureaucratic state and political actors

Withering development

Published On: February 13, 2018 01:30 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Economic development packages of goods and services that became prerequisites of prosperity and affluence have ravaged our shared social, cultural and ecological ties

Left or right?

Published On: December 24, 2017 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

UML is critical of Western ‘hegemony’ but is then funded by money coming from Western countries

Promoting violence

Published On: November 7, 2017 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The perceived efficacy of the language of violence runs the risk of making peaceful methods ineffective

Connecting the dots

Published On: September 18, 2017 01:00 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

The evolving narrative of exploitation and domination established by the Madhesi uprising is only a part of a much larger national story.

Altars of change

Published On: August 21, 2017 08:07 AM NPT By: Pranab Kharel & Gaurab KC

Excessive focus on violent methods of social change in Nepal often eclipses parallel non-violent methods.