MAOIST PEOPLE’S WAR IN NEPAL: ISSUES AND CONCERNS

This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the Maoist "People's War" in Nepal, which by 2006 had engulfed much of the country and posed an existential threat to the state. It examines the key issues and concerns surrounding the insurgency. The study traces the ideological and historical origins of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and the root causes of the conflict, which it links to deep-seated poverty, inequality, political exclusion, and the failure of the post-1990 democratic governments to deliver on their promises. The research analyzes the strategy of the Maoist insurgency and the state's counter-insurgency response, detailing the escalating cycle of violence and the severe humanitarian consequences. The paper also assesses the international dimension of the conflict and the prospects for a negotiated political settlement. The analysis concludes that the Maoist insurgency was not a simple law-and-order problem but a profound political crisis that required a fundamental restructuring of the Nepali state.

By the mid-2000s, the Maoist insurgency had brought the Nepali state to the brink of collapse. This paper provides a detailed analysis of the key issues and concerns that defined this brutal conflict. The study begins by exploring the deep-seated root causes of the "People's War." It argues that the insurgency was not simply an ideological project but was fueled by the profound and widespread grievances of the rural poor, who had been largely bypassed by the development process and alienated by a corrupt and ineffective political system based in Kathmandu. The core of the article is an examination of the dynamics of the conflict itself. It analyzes the military strategy of the Maoists, which was based on the classic guerrilla warfare model of controlling the countryside and encircling the cities. It also provides a critical assessment of the state's counter-insurgency efforts, which were often brutal and indiscriminate, and which served to further alienate the rural population and swell the ranks of the rebels. The paper also delves into the complex political dimension, including the three-way power struggle between the monarchy, the parliamentary political parties, and the Maoists. The findings reveal a state in profound crisis. The paper concludes that a purely military solution was impossible and that a lasting peace would require a comprehensive political settlement that addressed the underlying root causes of the conflict through a fundamental and inclusive restructuring of the Nepali state.