A Gandhian in NC rues moral decline in party

KATHMANDU, Jan 18: He shivered with cold in his old age on one of the recent wintry mornings. He had no way to warm himself besides a quilt in his small room at Bijulibazar. The room is largely empty, except two benches for visitors to sit on and a small cupboard in which to keep his clothes. Books and invitation cards are scattered by the bedside and across the cold floor. [break]






“You know, I am thankful to Radheshyamji (Radheshyam Adhikari, lawmaker of the Nepali Congress) because he has provided me this room free of cost for more than a decade,” says former minister and Nepali Congress (NC) Central Working Committee member Bhim Bahadur Tamang, rinsing his wet hands with a faded towel. “The mornings have become very chilly these days,” says Tamang, 74, who never fails to read the morning newspapers by 7 a.m.



Content with his Gandhian way of living, Tamang feels worried about how corruption and pomposity of wealth has run deep inside his party, whose root, he says, was strongly-based on Mahatma Gandhi’s philosophy of simplicity. “In fact, BP Koirala inherited the Gandhian philosophy and the Nepali Congress later was influenced by Koirala´s simplicity of living,” Tamang, who served as Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister in 1997, says. “But I am surprised to see that those values have almost become a history now,” he adds.



Still fresh is in his memory is how dozens of leaders who joined the NC much later than he, built big buildings in Kathmandu overnight. Their pomposity of living doesn’t disappoint him, but he is very worried the culture of corruption and amassing wealth is gradually infesting the NC. “It is one of the reasons the NC is losing its clout among people. The greedy leaders failed to maintain the NC as a socialist party,” he says.






In his 50-years of political life, he has witnessed many in the NC began as simple and honest leaders. "I remember they had no money to even change slippers, shirts and pants let alone their own house and vehicle. I see these days they have big buildings and very expensive cars like Discovery," Tamang, who never thought of building his own house and amassing money despite being a minister and having had a respectable position in the party, says.



He feels proud of living a simple life. "They crossed the way and forgot the values of the NC. I am mentally and spiritually satisfied with my way of living, because people can’t point the finger at me. I cherish my dignity,” he says.



Tamang manages his monthly expenses with Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000. He says treatment for his diabetes has increased his monthly expenses to some Rs1,200 for the past few years.



Some good friends have been helping him manage his expenses. “Some understand my situation and give some money,” he says, adding, “But transportation has become expensive these days and it’s really tough sometimes.”



A resident of Jhule VDC in Dolakha district, Tamang has remained single after his wife left him some 40 years ago. He says he enjoys the bliss of single life. “But you know, it may be difficult during old age,” he adds.






In all his 74 years, he has not recognized any NC leader besides BP Koirala for wisdom, vision, simplicity and leadership.



“BP was very revolutionary. He (BP) took initiative to eliminate all taboos, including social and cultural discrimination in society. And specially, he always maintained the Gandhian philosophy of non-violence and simplicity,” he says.



Tamang gives a reference to an incident, he witnessed with BP in the past. When BP’s youngest son (Dr Sasanka Koirala) asked for a new pair of pants, BP politely asked him how many pairs of pants he had. When BP’s son replied that he had three in the cupboard, BP told him he, himself, managed with only two throughout his college years. “BP asked him to learn to live a simple life,” Tamang, who listened to the conversation, says.



He believes simplicity encourages people to remain honest. “Politics, in fact, is the game of sacrifice. The more you sacrifice, the more you feel free and gain social recognition,” he says.



Tamang is especially worried his party has not become institutionalized since the death of BP Koirala. “Individuals tried to influence the party with wealth and power. The wealth intoxicated them,” he says.






He is disappointed issue-based discussions rarely take place in the NC. "The leadership never encourages issue-based discussion. I feel we lack visionary leadership in the NC," says Tamang, who turned down the offer of presidential candidate in the past.



He felt he was not mature enough to be president. "My colleagues in the party insisted on me taking the offer, but I turned it down," he says.



He says the funeral of communist leader, late Nirmal Lama, has had a deeper impact on his life. "I saw the people ranging from bare-feet to millionaires attending the funeral of Lama, who never accepted the position of power in his life and maintained a simple life," Tamang says, adding, "I realized then that life will be complete when all people irrespective of their social status and wealth attend your last rites."



ghanashyam@myrepublica.com