Cracks in the melting potThe various rights bodies, including the National Dalit Commission, need serious political support to truly stamp out discrimination.
It is embarrassing for Nepal, a country looking forward to development and prosperity, that casteism still remains deeply entrenched into the societal fabric. This, in a country that for years struggled to remove the yolk of federalism and regressive traditions, and finally succeeded in establishing a secular republican set-up. Yet, from the privilege that upper caste Nepalis still receive, and the state’s own embrace of the ideas of sanatan dharma in its constitution, it was always going to be an upward battle to completely uproot such social evils. But this should not be used as an excuse to continue to discriminate against the marginalised. Nepal cannot claim to be progressing towards development when backward ideas still prevent communities from seeing all humans as being equal.
The recent attack on a group of youths from the Dalit community in Rukum West-Jajarkot, where at least three have lost their lives, shows how regressive Nepali society remains. The incident, which has also left many injured or missing, occurred because people of the locality in question wanted to stop an inter-caste marriage from happening. Locals allegedly pelted stones at the group, chasing them down to the Bheri River. According to a witness, the perpetrators went as far as to bludgeon the would-be groom, Navaraj BK, before throwing his body into the river. There are also allegations that police that first arrived on the scene did nothing to diffuse the angry mob. This is alarming.
It would be wishful to think that this barbarism can be seen as an isolated incident. The marginalised, particularly the Dalits, continue to be harassed in many forms. While casteism was criminalised after the implementation of the Civil Code in 1962, Dalits continue to be ostracised on a regular basis. And, while Article 40 of the 2015 Constitution provides clear added protections for Dalits, this has not been enforced well. Ironically, while elected office provides far-reaching power to many, Dalits have not been able to harness the same. Even as the new constitution guaranteed seats for Dalits in government—especially in local bodies—the newfound elective power has been reduced to mere tokenism. Many Dalit representatives in local bodies feel like they are being used to rubber-stamp policies that they had no hand in formulating, while being discriminated against by their peers. The bigotry is not just found in rural districts. For example, in 2018, Member of Parliament Kalu Devi Bishwokarma informed the Lower House that she was finding a hard time finding suitable accommodations to rent in the Kathmandu Valley due to her caste.
The current attack is symptomatic of the larger failure to end discrimination and prejudice. It was understood, during the framing of the constitution, that structural support was needed to root out social evils. One step, of course, was the reservation of seats for Dalits and women. The above examples show that this has not helped much in Dalit upliftment. The other support was the formation of specialised commissions to look after the rights of specific marginalised communities. Yet, five years since the promulgation of the Constitution and over two years since the forming of a strong majority government, the National Dalit Commission remains largely non-functional.
Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa has announced the formation of a five-member probe team to look into the recent attack and murder. While it is positive news that the recent incident has received the federal government’s attention, it should not be forgotten that the current government has played a major role in undermining the rights of the marginalised in the country. While it is important to bring the perpetrators in the current case to book, it is equally important to strengthen the various constitutional rights bodies. Otherwise, cases of discrimination against the marginalised will continue to occur, and Nepali society will remain backwards.