Rabindra Nath Sharma Explained

Rabindra Nath Sharma
Office:Minister of Foreign Affairs
Term:1997
Predecessor:Prakash Chandra Lohani
Successor:Prakash Chandra Lohani
Party:Rashtriya Prajatantra Party
Nationality:Nepali

Rabindra Nath Sharma (Nepali: रविन्द्रनाथ शर्मा) (died 22 November 2008[1]) was a Nepalese politician, leader of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party[2] and Minister of Finance of Nepal from 1997 to 1998. [3]

Sharma was one of the few Nepali leaders that continued to advocate for a Hindu constitutional monarchy after the Parliament scrapped the Kings major powers in June 2006. His advocacy provided a much-needed backbone to those calling for a Hindu state under a constitutional monarchy at a time when the communists were engaged in political and institutional capture. In January 2008 under Sharma's leadership RPP-Nepal organized the first mass protests against the Maoist's decision to declare Nepal a republic without a referendum[4]

In October 2006 Sharma was “unanimously” elected the chairman of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP)-Nepal after Kamal Thapa quit the post[5] Sharma is widely credited to have been an important political and moral force to keep the debate about future of Hinduism in a secular Republic alive. For this advocacy for a Hindu constitutional monarchy and against growing Christian proselytization, goons of the CPN-Maoists attacked Sharma and his followers in Bhitamode, Nepal and then Pokhara.[6] In 2009, a few months after Sharma's death, the Unified Maoists-affiliated All Nepal Peasants' Organisation-Revolutionary (ANPO-R) attacked and seized is land in Nawalparasi.

Sharma's politics lead him to gain the soubriquet of ‘Chanakya’ of Nepalese politics.

Notes and References

  1. News: Nepal press selection list 23 Nov 08. NewsLibrary.com. 26 July 2011. 23 November 2008.
  2. Web site: CIAA nabs ex-minister Rabindra Nath Sharma. 2003-10-21. The Kathmandu Post. 26 July 2011.
  3. News: Six Nepal ministers resign as coalition government faces no-confidence vote. 1997-10-01. Xinhua news agency, Beijing. 26 July 2011.
  4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yXI4Fej0iI
  5. https://thehimalayantimes.com/kathmandu/sharma-elected-rpp-nepal-chief
  6. https://www.onlinekhabar.com/2017/11/636111