Nepal’s kings had truly been monarchs of all they surveyed. But King Gyanendra now faces the prospect of losing not just his palaces and powers, but also a lot more to the republican rage. And the moves to divest the king of his property seem to be coming in a torrent. After its decision, last week, to take over five royal palaces, a ministerial committee of the interim government in Kathmandu has now moved to nationalize three more palaces and eight forests owned by the royal family. It may be a long time before the real impact of these historic moves is known. But it is safe to assume that they will shake Nepalese society as no other event in the country’s recent history has done. The democracy movements of 1960 and 1989 challenged absolute monarchy. But, while they reflected the people’s preference for popular, representative governments, they did not signal a complete break from the institution of monarchy. What is happening now is dramatically different from those earlier political upheavals. It is no longer a question of limiting the king’s powers. Even a ceremonial monarchy appears to be out of place in the new political society that is about to emerge in Nepal.

It is a truism that it is easier to demolish an old order than successfully replace it with a new one. Revolutionary as the moves to nationalize the king’s property are, a far more difficult task for Nepal’s political class would be to put in place a republican democracy. Two centuries of royal rule will continue to have their influences on politics and society. Besides, Nepal’s major political parties seem to be divided on how to build the new democracy. Despite the nationalization of royal property, the partners of Girija Prasad Koirala’s coalition government differ on major issues of national reconstruction. They had agreed to decide on the fate of the monarchy at the first session of a constituent assembly. But the elections to the assembly, once postponed and now scheduled to be held in November, have become a bone of contention between the Maoists and the democratic parties. The worst problems relate to the Maoists’ dubious tactics. They had been the strongest advocates of republicanism. But they now have their schemes to sabotage the polls. Both the monarchy and Maoism are enemies of Nepalese democracy.