Flip-flops Of A Leader That Cost His Politics

Former Prime Minister Dr. Babu Ram Bhattarai has been facing one or other kind of dilemmas throughout his piquant political career of more or less four decades.  Every leader, of course, faces dilemmas because leadership involves tough decisions for which there are no clear pathways and obvious answers. However, in the case of the former prime minister, some of the dilemmas that trouble him are seen to be of his own making or choices. He goes swift in taking decisions and unleashes a total plunge into political whirlpool. He contends that the decisions he takes today or took in the past were all directed and motivated to attain nobler political ends in the new epoch. But he fails to gather and muster enough support to deliver results inherent in his mission. Then he is forced to backtrack and even go for remorseful introspection and self-examination. Some of his supporters accuse him of being self-centred, haughty and inconsiderate, particularly because he does not allegedly consult with these colleagues to weigh on the pros and cons or consequences of his political decisions.

Nonetheless, Dr. Bhattarai dares to admit his weaknesses affirming that he is susceptible to emotional flirtations laced with idyllic political notions and ideas oblivious of the ground reality. The political report which he had authored on behalf of his party and published into a booklet not very long ago  recounts his political missteps or flip flops that cost dearly on his image. He pledges not to recommit such mistakes and keep sticking firmly to the transformative ideas on prosperity, participation and inclusion of the country. Of late, Dr. Bhattarai  confronts  a dilemma  whether or not to go back to the fold of the Maoist  party led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda that he had quit almost eight years ago arguing that the party had lost its meaning and relevance in the changed political epoch . However, later, more than a year ago, he agreed to mending fences with the Maoist party and its leader Prachanda and fought last general elections on a joint coalition platform. At that time, Dr. Bhattarai and Prachanda had agreed to build a Socialist Centre (Samajbadi Kendra) – an idea Bhattarai has been toying with and pleading for long. 

Personality traits

Furthermore, he surrendered his Gorkha constituency, invited Prachanda to contest last general elections to represent the same constituency and offered all support for the latter’s victory. However, bonhomie between the two leaders could not survive longer as it is always characterised by shadow and sunshine, ups and down, hot and cold. As Samajbadi Kendra, composed of some of the communist and leftist parties, was formed and declared, shunning and sidelining Dr. Bhattarai, the simmering mistrust between Prachanda and Bhattarai surfaced again. Dr. Bhattarai   reportedly felt ignored, if not betrayed. Infuriated as he was, Dr. Bhattarai fumed that the agenda of his party’s dialogue with the Maoist party should be foreclosed once and for all. However, coming under the intense pressure of his senior party colleagues, Dr. Bhattarai has caved in and agreed to keep negotiation process alive with the Maoist party to cultivate what is said as transformative unity. He has reconstituted the dialogue panel to lead it and take the negotiation process forward. 

As the negotiation process between Prachanda and Dr. Bhattarai is yet to set off formally, speculations are rife if Prachanda and Bhattarai would talk constructively and restore their uneasy relationship by joining hands to strategise and fix their onward political journey. Both the leaders have different personality types and traits. They have temperamental differences as well. These differences had persisted not only in their outlook and styles but also in social and political contents during the ten year long armed insurgency which both of them, among others, had strategised and captained. Dr. Bhatttarai is said to be of introvert type person who holds set ideas and ideals but lacks clout for organisation building. Many who had an opportunity to work with him say that he has the knack to negotiate without compromising on basic values and norms. But Prachanda is said to be open, calculative and accommodative keeping his parochial interests and needs in mind. However, both Prachanda and Dr. Bhattarai are fully aware of the instrumentality and importance of the one for the other in tiding over crisis and rebranding the tattering Maoist party.

New political epoch

Dr. Bhattarai is in a big dilemma. He is, in fact, said to be caught between devil and deep sea. Ever since he left the Maoist party, Dr. Bhattarai has been saying that the country needs a new transformative political force to carry out the political, social and economic change of the country. He has been arguing that such changes are not possible to be achieved under the leadership of classical communist parties and the traditional Nepali Congress party. Dr. Bhattarai had announced that he had not only left the Maoist party but also stopped believing in the communist ideology. But his staging back to the Maoist party in its existing form and format will definitely raise question on his political consistency and integrity. 

In Dr. Bhattarai, Prime Minister Prachanda could get a valuable ally and thought leader in reframing, reshaping and refurbishing the dwindling Maoist party. But he will have difficulties in persuading the hard core Maoist functionaries to go together with Dr. Bhattarai’s post-communist ideas and thoughts. Political onlookers have set their eyes on how their negotiation to reorganise and transform the Maoist party fares ahead. The two leaders need to take cognizance of the fact that communist tag and ideology has become a type of an anathema in the new political epoch. It has no theoretical and practical relevance to suit to evolving global era. They are advised to shed and shun the tag or mark of communist variations and brace for total social-democratic transformation both in form and content.  

(The author is presently associated with Policy Research Institute (PRI) as a senior research fellow.  rijalmukti@gmail.com)