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notes: This short article is a summary of a discussion programmed at Martin Chautari, a research and public discussion forum in Kathmandu, Nepal, on 7 October 2012. The title is “Inclusion in the Nepal Army” (tentative title) and is based on a research fellowship provided by SNV to Rajesh Chamling, who is currently working as a fellow at SIRF (Social Inclusion Research Fund). Readers are kindly requested not to rely on this article for a true view of the subject discussed here. This is just an attempt to introduce the subject through my blog www.visitskc.wordpress.comIf you have any further questions, please email Mr. Chamling chamlingrj@gmail.com.
The subject of this study is the Nepal Army, which is the main security institution in Nepal and is often considered a sensitive issue as it is usually related to national security and most of the information related to such sensitive institutions is considered “confidential” to avoid any kind of violent consequences. Rajesh Chamling raised the issue of inclusion in the Nepal Army by focusing on the ethnic background of army officers from junior to senior levels in the infantry and technical branches. His study found that among the army officers, 19% of JAnajatis Among them, most are from the Newar community (5% of the total army officers), while the least number of army officers are from the Madhesi region. Rajesh Chamling revealed that Newars occupy most positions in both infantry and technical branches of the Nepal Army. According to him, the higher Human Development Index (HDI) and other socio-economic status of different ethnic groups could be the reason for this disparity.
Mr. Chamling briefly provided the historical background of security agencies based on ethnic identity. He reminded us of the Shiekh and Punjabi regiments in India and the Gorkhali regiments in Nepal, which were based on their respective ethnic identities. The Nepalese Gorkhali regiment sent to the British army during World War II was mainly composed of the Magya ethnic group, and according to Mr. Chamling, the British later divided the Nepalese soldiers in their regiment into two groups based on their ethnicity (read the research article for details).
Mr. Chamling recounted Prithivi Narayan Shah’s mission to unify and expand Nepal, noting: Cas Chetteris was given the power to command the troops, which led to the exclusion of other ethnic groups. He announced the term “Kali Bahadur Gana” (Gana means “army” in Nepali), Bhairav Ghana and Ripomardini Ghana The naming of these different regiments is based on national characteristics, which have been present in the Nepalese Army since the beginning of modern Nepal.
During the discussion, Mr. Chamling pointed out that there are various wrong practices by the leadership of the Nepal Army that have led to the exclusion of certain ethnic groups and heavy bias towards certain ethnic groups like the Newars. For example, in 2016, the BS lowered the minimum qualification for conscription from the intermediate level to the SLC level because intermediate graduates were hard to find at that time and to facilitate the army officers who were in senior positions, they changed the policy to recruit only people from their own ethnic group or from their hometown. For example, a famous army officer (…Shumsher Rana) from Sindhupaljongk district had promised to recruit one son from every family in Sindhupaljongk district who was close to him or his hometown. As Mr. Chamling said, this arbitrary selection and recruitment method by the army officers has led to a heavy bias towards one ethnic group and the exclusion of other ethnic groups in Nepal. Similar anomalies were seen in the issue of age requirements.
Chamling believes that the Nepal Army should take the issue of inclusivity seriously unless it harms the Army’s capabilities. He insists that the Nepal Army’s leadership should be inclusive enough to spread the wave of inclusivity throughout the Army and they should adhere to consistent recruitment and promotion policies instead of arbitrary policies based on convenience and nepotism.
My feedback to him was:
Your findings suggest that in the Nepal Army, Newars dominate while Madhesis are excluded. You give reasons for the exclusion like higher HDI and other historical reasons but I don’t think HDI explains the whole story. HDI only considers economic, educational and life expectancy aspects of the population and to explain why Madhesis are excluded, your analysis should consider the role of the 2006 Madhesi movement and its positive/negative/neutral role in strengthening Madhesi presence in the Nepal Army. How does political representation (which is not explained by HDI indicators) affect the presence of certain ethnic groups in the Nepal Army or any other institution?
(I’m not sure if my question is valid!)
PS: Summaries of Shekhar KC’s discussion can be sent to kushekharkc@gmail.com
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