By RV Warjri
The manner in which the current Republic of India is governed today, its constitutional Head of State, our gracious lady President of India who is only occasionally heard or seen by the media, profoundly commented on the recent Gen Z upheavals in Nepal. President Murmu said that not “schemes” but “the recognition of people’s rights” constitutes “real empowerment“.
Hope the President’s admonition is taken seriously by the decision makers be it at the Centre in Delhi or the State Capitals in India, particularly the states in the Northeast whose economy is largely scheme – centric .
It has become conventional especially among the ruling elite and the middle class to dismiss most revolutions and movements as instigated by external forces, foreign inspired, super powers, deep state conspiracy etc. While there may be merit in this perception , over-exaggerating it could lead to half- baked conclusions. Losing sight of the underlying causes that led to the bursting of such movements and worse, to cloud the approach for a rational analysis and prevents us from coming out with appropriate solutions. Moreover, media reports focused almost entirely on the destruction and the public unrest with no attempt to reach out to the people who are behind the mobilization to find out their views. One common strand which symbolized the movements in Nepal , Bangladesh and Sri Lanka was that they were largely Gen Z – led , student- led or youth – led. The age groups they belong to are under 35. The protest in Sri Lanka in 2022 was fueled by the economic crisis and runaway inflation, daily blackouts , energy shortage, etc. In Bangladesh it began as a quota movement in early June 2024 led by the ‘Students Against Discrimination.’ The quota for children of freedom fighters had functioned as a form of political patronage to consolidate the power of the Sheikh Hasina regime that had grown autocratic . Lack of economic opportunities, unemployment , police repression , crackdown on dissent, etc., led to full scale violence. This is especially notable, since Nepal witnessed a youth-led movement against corruption, nepotism, political instability, and oligarchy regimes run by a gerontocracy .
In Nepal the uprising was led by various Gen Z groups, spearheaded by Sudan Gurung of the Hami Nepal NGO. These groups have been raising questions about the corruption, nepotism and misgovernance of the regime. The display of arrogant and affluent lifestyles of the children of ruling elites known as ‘Nepo babies’ have offended the sensitivities of Gen. Z who have been creating networks of dissenting groups through social media.
Ms Pandey, a 24-year-old environmental campaigner, had uploaded a video showing a mining site in Chure, one of the most fragile mountain ranges in the region. Nepal’s resources should belong to the people, not to “politicians’ private limited companies”, she wrote, calling on her peers to “march against corruption and the misuse of our nation’s wealth.” The point here is how exploitation of mining also fueled the protests.
“Nothing can stop a revolution in Nepal” – Jawaharlal Nehru wrote to Jayaprakash Narayan in November 1950. Such was the historical depth of corruption in Nepal . The supposedly progressive federal constitution passed in 2015 remained only in theory with neither progress nor implementation . Millions of investments were concentrated in a few hands. Their children would study abroad, compounded by their extravagant lifestyles.
Therefore corruption by the so called elected rulers , stood out very clearly as the number one reason for all these movements in all these neighbouring countries of India. Investigations conducted by professional and diligent journalists also exposed land grabs, cooperative scams, gold smuggling, etc. Also , South Asia is undergoing dramatic demographic and developmental changes. The pace of development is, however, slow and highly inequitable. This is fodder in the hands of tech savvy youngsters, social media networking and the mobilization of widespread popular dissent. And more visibility of the Gen Z also means more freedom not less.
Historically and regretfully, one common collateral damage in all these revolutions and movements is that they spiral into uncontrollable violence , anarchy , vandalism , mayhem and deaths. That has been part of most revolutions , be it the French revolution of 1789 or the Bolshevik revolution of 1917 or the Arab Springs of 2010. The late illustrious President of the United States , John F Kennedy once said that “either you have a non-violent revolution or you will have a violent revolution”. It was Aldous Huxley who said, “That men do not learn very much from the lessons of history is the most important of all the lessons that history has to teach.”
The spillover of the developments in Nepal can have a corrosive effect in India and especially neighbouring Northeast India. Who knows ? The same may or may not happen in India either nationally or in certain pockets depending on where the boiling point can reach !
Lets look at the past 50 years in India. We had non-violent movements no doubt. The first was Jayaprakash Narayan’s (JP) Navnirman Andolan, beginning 1974 compounded by the George Fernandes-led railway strike that paralysed India. Yet, these failed to dislodge Mrs Gandhi till an election did it in 1977. The second was Anna Hazare’s so-called anti-corruption protests in 2011 fully backed by new TV and strong elements in the Opposition till elections changed it in 2014.
And the system is also such that only groups that enjoy dominance have a chance of having their grievances addressed by the state. Agitations involving marginalized communities, or populations already demonized in the security discourse like Muslims , Christians , Dalits , Adivasis are put down with brutal force and lack of empathy from the majority. Oppression is a potential for explosion.
Coming back to the scheme- centric model of development in the Northeast, big megabucks happen only from land deals or land grabs, illegal mining by the high level, government contracts and government procurement. In Meghalaya, even low level contractors and suppliers are crying that most of the contracts and procurements are being cornered by a few. The few who have family members as Ministers or politicians. So the few control both political capital as well as economic capital with super luxury cars like Lamborghini . Also a money machine to the ruling party they wield unbridled influence. Like Nepal , children study abroad or in elite schools in other capitals .
Regularly , letters to the editor by the youth have expressed disgust at the frivolous appointments of Chairman, Co Chairman, Advisers etc to the Government of Meghalaya at a heavy cost to the exchequer, whereas the jobs are not forthcoming. Employment is empowerment and as President Murmu says, being gainfully employed is “real empowerment!” These are the Gen Z , questioning. Not to speak of other agitations by teachers and others .
Author Ayn Rand in Atlas Shrugged had warned, “When you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing – When you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favours – When you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don’t protect you against them, but protect them against you – When you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice you know that your society is doomed.”
A foot note. As per international media reports , the “Gen Z protests” in Nepal have captured the imagination of young people in China as well. On social media platforms such as Weibo, Zhihu, Douyin, and Bilibili, Chinese youth are debating the causes behind the unrest. This is in spite of the success of China in denting large scale poverty and extraordinary economic ascendancy .
So GenZ is not going to sit and watch like the generations before them did. They are asking hard questions which politicians must answer or face their ire.
(The writer is a diplomat and former Ambassador)
