Manisha is against Koirala in Nepal polls

KATHMANDU: Bollywood star Manisha Koirala is in Nepal to campaign for
the municipal polls on February 8 even though her granduncle and former
prime minister GP Koirala is at the forefront of opposition protests
against the elections.

The Nepali beauty, who has carved a
niche for herself in India’s film industry, plans to stay till the
February 8 elections and take part in the campaign.

Manisha is
the granddaughter of the late BP Koirala, Nepal’s first elected prime
minister, who in the 1960s bore the brunt of the then king Mahendra’s
attacks on parliamentary parties.

Mahendra’s son King Gyanendra
followed in his father’s footsteps last year, seizing absolute power
and jailing most opposition leaders. The king’s direct rule is being
opposed by B P Koirala’s Nepali Congress party under the leadership of
his younger brother G P Koirala.

Manisha, however, has chosen to
support the king. So does her father, Prakash Koirala, who last year
was made a minister by the king in his handpicked cabinet.

While
Nepali Congress is boycotting the polls, Prakash Koirala has formed a
new party, Nepali Congress (Nationalist), which is taking part in the
controversial exercise. “It is my duty to come to Nepal during
elections,” Manisha told the state-run Rising Nepal in an interview. “I
will help create an atmosphere for polls.”

Manisha came down
heavily on the opposition parties as well as the international
community for not supporting the polls.  “They did not say a word when
Bhutan’s king evicted 100,000 of his citizens of Nepali origin who have
been suffering,” she said.

She added King Gyanendra had seized
power last year to restore democracy. “His Majesty has asked for three
years, which is not a very long period.” “The king is democratic.”

The
actress said political parties should join the king to help resolve the
Maoist insurgency. “They should first pay attention to the current
national crisis and only then raise their political agenda.” Her
statements came even as her granduncle and three-time former prime
minister G P Koirala appealed to the UN and international community not
to recognise controversial local elections February 8.

The
octogenarian leader, who was released from house arrest on Sunday, said
the civic elections called by King Gyanendra have no “social,
political, legal or moral base”.

“I therefore appeal to the
international community, including the UN, to de-recognise it,” Koirala
said in a statement. Koirala’s Nepali Congress party is leading a
seven-party opposition alliance opposing Gyanendra’s power seizure by
force last year and is now actively campaigning for a boycott of the
polls.

Another former prime minister and senior leader of the
same party, Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, has also broken his virtual
political retirement and urged the king to put off the polls and begin
reconciliation with the opposition parties.

Bhattarai,
perceived as being close to the palace, said the king should end direct
rule, release all political detainees and ask the parties to dialogue
to form an all-party government.

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