-Prem Kumari Pant

It was in the year 1885 that the recruitment of Gurkhas for the British Army was formally permitted by Bir Shumsher (1885-1901).

The settlement of this issue had been pending since 1816.

During the First World War (1914-18), the Gurkha troops fought on the British side and established a reputation for skill, strength and discipline.

The scheme of supplying arms to the Nepalese government in return for Gurkha recruits was an expression of this policy.

Henceforth, Nepal’s military resources, particularly her manpower, were looked upon by the British as an essential accessory to the Indian government’s own armed strength.

The Rana government, on the other hand, found in the Gurkha recruitment scheme, apart from its economic and other benefits, a means of ingratiating themselves with the British as well as keeping restless martial tribes of Nepal gainfully engaged and contended.

By the turn of the century the British had thus achieved another objective: Nepalese friendliness enabled them to not only strengthen the Indian Army for meeting external energies but to minimize any risk of internal threat to British rule in India caused by mutiny in that army.

The Gurkha under British command fought ferociously against the Russians and the restless Pathans and were expected to show no sympathy for any rebellious Sikh and Muslim contingent of the Indian army.

The Gurkhas were naturally looked upon as the most satisfactory guarantee of the continued good relations between the British and Nepalese governments.

Alongside with the improvement in political relations there was the increased economic interdependence between Nepal and British-India.

There was expansion of trade.

Nepalese in large number found employment in British India.

The volume of capital investment by the Rana in Indian industries and commercial establishments grew.

All this made the Rana stake in British Friendship correspondingly heavy.

Chandra Shumsher’s contribution to pushing Nepal still deeper under British sway was substantial.

Nepal started receiving a yearly gift of one million rupees – which still continues as mark of gratitude for the services rendered by the Gurkha in the British army.

Gurkha troops again fought for British and its allies in the Second World War.

After India gained independence from British colonial rule, under the tripartite treaty signed between Nepal, India and Britain in 9th November, 1947.

Nepal allowed India and Britain to recruit Gurkhas for their respective armies.

The British had started this practice of recruitment long back.

The Gorkha recruitment continues even today. Originally, the agreement for Gorkha recruitment had been reached between the Nepal Government and the British colonial power.

However, it should not have been valid after British raj came to an end in India.

Unfortunately, the practice was given continuity under the so-called tripartite agreement between Nepal, Britain and India.

When British colonial rule came to an end in India, the Sugauli Treaty and all other treaties and agreements made with the British colonial power in India should have been automatically abrogated.

Moreover, India claimed to be the successor of British colonial power despite partition out of which Pakistan and Hindustan (India) were born.

India claimed to be the successor of British colonial rule simply because it wanted continuity of the colonial rules, systems and practices.

After British left India, the position of India should have been like that of pre-British era.

But it did not happen simply because India gave continuity to colonial practice and system.

As a result, Indians are in the state of colony of a handful of elites and aristocrats, despite its claim to be world’s largest democracy.

Under new agreement, the Gurkha could be used by India in any situation except against the “Hindus”, “Unarmed mob” and the “Gurkhas”.

This practice of recruiting Nepalis in Indian and British army continues till today.

The humiliation, indignity and disgrace in which the Nepalese soldiers have to serve in foreign armies cannot be realized by those who control the reign of power in Kathmandu.

In 1982 Gurkha Regiment participated in the war over Falklands Islands, Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Argentinean representative to the UN, in his country’s reaction over the participation of the British Gurkha Regiment in the war over the Falklands Islands, described the Nepali troops as mercenaries and as sold on money to fight for others.

What is still more painful is that the Nepalese soldiers are utilized only on crucial occasions to protect the territorial integrity of India and British.

They were made to sacrifice their lives on the Kashmir front against Pakistan and on the NEFA front against China and against Bangladesh front.

In all these armed confrontations against India, the Nepalese had to bear the brunt at the front.

The recruitment of Nepali youths in the Indian and British armed forces must be regarded as a slur and bolt on the dignity of the nation, no matter what might have been the cause of origin of this practice.

No sovereign country supplies its young men to be used as cannon fodder by other countries.

But even though we take deep pride in calling ourselves an independent and sovereign nation, we have never demanded annulment of the agreement under which these recruitments are made.

Nepal needs youthful and healthy manpower for its own development and progress.

Since 1950 we are hearing the slogans from the Leftists parties in the street to close down the recruitment centers.

We have also experienced the leftist government six times in the country, but nothing happened in this matter.

Nevertheless, what actually creates a feeling of disappointment is the fact that the same tradition which commenced several generations ago during the Rana period with Nepalese people leaving their hearth and home in search of greener pastures abroad should continue to persist even today.

While this is the condition on the one hand, hundreds of thousands of our young men are still being compelled to shed their blood for others, sometimes against our own friends under the control of another friend.

It is really a curse that the Nepalese should have to live that way even under the Loktantrik government.

It is a colossal human problem the Loktantrik government should ponder over seriously.

Six year ago Communist party of Afghanistan had expressed serious concern over continuous presence of Nepali mercenaries in Afghanistan along with army personnel of the US, Britain, Polish and Canada to crush the Afghani people’s resistance against ‘imperialists’.

Importantly, hundreds of civilians are also going to Afghanistan illegally to find works. Many Nepali people have been employed by the private security agencies to guard the sensitive areas in Afghanistan.

Nepal has no hostility with the Afghani people. However, the growing deployment of Nepalese for security purpose has augmented the likelihood of them being targeted as in Iraq where 12 Nepalese were murdered mercilessly by an insurgent group in 2004.

Of course, Nepali citizens should not be allowed to be used against those nations especially belonging to SAARC.

The question of Nepal’s sovereignty has now been raised more prominently and strongly than ever before.

This is because Nepal is now in history’s worst political crisis and its political capability has dwindled to the lowest ebb, which has given rise to foreign meddling and interference.

Political instability and vulnerability often impair and weaken diplomatic capability which makes the country unable to defend its national interest abroad. Instead various external powers and interest groups get opportunity to interfere and play against our own interest.

This is what exactly has happened in Nepal at present.

We have perfectly and successfully proved our inability and incompetence.

We have shown the world that we are incompetent to resolve our own problems and have sought help from external forces to settle our differences and solve our internal problems.

Although external interference in our internal affairs is not a new phenomenon, the foreign meddling at present is more acute and more naked.

There used to be external interference in Nepal, but it was indirect and applied through coercive diplomacy and other means.

Now it is direct and objectionable. Foreigners are now dictating and playing openly in our internal politics and external powers have been catalyst in determining our political course, which is, to a large, extent our own making.

Nepal had agreed for Gorkha recruitment not on its volition but rather under pressure from British colonial power.

Nepal has officially adopted non-aligned foreign policy which means Nepal does not have any enemy and does not want to ally with any power bloc in the world.

The other salient feature of Nepal’s foreign policy is its strict adherence to five principles of peaceful co-existence, which clearly seeks to refrain from war and conflict with any other country.

Similarly, Gorkhas were sent to Sri Lanka to intervene in this island nation.

This is all against Nepal’s non-aligned foreign policy.

While Nepal seeks friendship and cooperation with all countries in the world, its citizens are fighting against our international friends to defend other countries, which is a great irony of the 21st century.

End Text.
# Ms. Pant is a very senior journalist of Nepal: Ed. Upadhyaya.