Prachanda exemplifies the "fighting spirit", and I am not asking you to read between the lines. I believe he really does, or how else could he have changed the course of the country. There are still many who follow him and see him as the savior who can get us out of the rut that is full of inequalities based on gender, creed, caste and all the usual jargons. Whatever the case, as every thoroughbred Nepali would want to believe, it's in our 'blood' to feel that one should go down fighting than succumb to any pressure. That is precisely what keeps the fight going.There's almost an anti-thesis of Prachanda, in the form of our premier who too is fighting to promulgate the constitution. It's just that every time when I seem him on paper, I wish this frail old man, who needs to take at least a couple doses of 'oxygen' each day, in a manner we have our meals, could figure out how to fight. How come he cannot make sense of the fact that the current stalemate—wonder if that's the right word, for it's become difficult to recall when the country was ever vibrant—is nothing but outcome of the same phenomenon of "fighting spirit" that is the hallmark of all us. The 'us', I believe, is his inner coterie who would not let him budge an inch, leaving him with no choice but to harp on consensus at every forum.
Now, it makes perfect sense that there was a time when I would get to read something like that the PM made an abrupt exit from the meeting saying 'please get this done', for I now know that he needs to get his meal of oxygen. The poor old man must be going through one of the most difficult moments and hence I request you to not interpret whatever you have read thus far as a mockery of the most powerful man of our country. He is a rarity as his is the image of a man who is "clean"—something increasingly rare among the high and the mighty of this country. But what good is the image if he cannot make anything happen?
As if he did not have enough to fight for, there is someone up in arms against him. I am sure officials at Baluwatar must have requested for more supply of Oxygen cylinders every time Dr Govinda KC goes on strike; he manages to shake the system.
Dr KC is harming no one but himself and personally I believe if he manages to garner so much support, there must be something about him. After all, his followers are not mere mortals like you and me. Or why would parents get into this "fight" to get their children into medical school, happily dishing out millions. (Again, trust me, I have still seen parents who want to make doctors out of their children without even bothering to know what the child wants.)
The fight of "The State vs Dr KC" is everywhere. Chances are by the time this piece sees the light of the day he would have "bagged" another set of promises. It's not the first time he is fighting against the 'system', and has been given assurances, but I have a sneaking feeling that every time he fought, you felt like supporting him.
The aftermath of Dr KC's fight is another fight, a fight between whether he is 'right' in taking up the fight. That is, I guess, "beauty" of democracy. However, ever since I heard my professors define this system as "one where majority have their say but minority have their way", I have been forced to revisit my entire orientation about the notion. The fallacy of this system has never been so disturbing.
To cut the doctor's story short, the notion that my professor shared with me perfectly fits the bill since even though majority of people may show solidarity with his fighting spirit, someone somewhere in minority who have started dubbing him 'lunatic' will have their way. And to make matters worse, we all know that like every one of us, he is not going to live forever.
When I sat down to write I did not have the doctor in mind, for enough has been said and written about him. What got me writing about this fighting spirit is a small incident when I went to pay my monthly water bills at one KUKL counter. An elderly person in the line was asked to go get the 'change' by the officer inside. The man, possibly in his late sixties, was adamant that he had other businesses and therefore couldn't wait. He said he was the customer and therefore the onus was with the KUKL official to get the amount sorted out.
Within minutes this argument transformed into a "fight" bringing forth the "fighting spirit" of the two parties. Things finally got resolved but without clarification of whose responsibility is it to bring the 'exact amount to the nearest rupee' while coming to pay the bills? A certain Irish band sang "I still haven't found what I have been looking for". If only the lines were changed to "We still haven't found what we have been fighting for" it could easily become our national anthem!
hiteshkarki@gmail.com
Related story
Nepal Distilleries launches premium brand spirit 40 UP in Nepal...
