Nepal’s LGBTQ community celebrates Gaijatra festival
Kathmandu, Aug 10: Nepal’s LGBTQ community organised rallies focusing on their political rights and representations in Kathmandu on Sunday during the traditional Gaijatra festival.
Gaijatra or Cow Festival mainly belongs to the Newar community of Kathmandu Valley and is observed annually to commemorate those who have passed away within the past year. The LGBTQ, known as LGBTI (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans-sexual and Inter-sex), community in Nepal organised colourful parades in Kathmandu to commemorate the members of the community who died in the past year.
Maya Ko Pahichan and Blue Diamond Society (BDS), the organisations working for the rights and welfare of the sexual and gender minority communities of Nepal, organised the events. The members displayed placards demanding equal rights, political representation and welfare for their community in Nepal. The LGBTQ community in Nepal has been observing the Gaijatra Festival for more than two decades. A section of the community even celebrates the occasion as Pride Day.
“This time we focused on political rights and representation of the LGBTI community,” said Sunil Babu Panta, the first gay Parliament Member of Nepal, who is also the chair of Maya Ko Pahichan. Our community took part in the Gaijatra Festival to express solidarity with the sexual and gender minority community, pointed out Panta. “We have made some achievements to ensure the rights and welfare of the LGBTI community, but we still need to formulate many laws relating to the community, he added.
Traditionally, cows-or people dressed as cows-parade through the streets, and people offer them milk, fruits, beaten rice, traditional bread, curd, grains, and money. These offerings are believed to aid the departed souls in their afterlife. The festival’s origin dates back to the reign of King Pratap Malla (mid-17th century King of Kathmandu), who introduced it to console his grieving queen after the death of their son during a smallpox epidemic. To ease her sorrow, the king encouraged citizens to perform humorous and satirical acts in public, highlighting that death is a universal human experience.
Over time, Gaijatra evolved into a platform for satirical expression, often used to comment on political and social issues. The government has declared a public holiday in the Kathmandu Valley today to mark the occasion. The rally was the first since the US, among the biggest donors for the LGBTQ+ rights campaign in the country, ceased financial aid. (AP)