SINHAS Vol 29 No 2 Hari Har Jnawali and Bali Dhan Rai

Colonial Interpretation of Self-Determination: Impact on the Madheshi Autonomy in Nepal

Hari Har Jnawali and Bali Dhan Rai

Abstract
Colonial interpretation of self-determination deterred the mainstream political parties from recognizing the Madheshi demand for autonomy in the Tarai region of Nepal. The Madheshi parties demanded autonomy within the state system, wanting to build political, social, cultural, and economic futures on their own. Their demand did not contain any desire for separation or independence, which the Madheshi leaders frequently clarified. Yet the mainstream political parties believed that such a set-up would inevitably lead to territorial disintegration. The latter viewed the Madheshi demand for autonomy and self-determination as a precursor to a territorial independence. In doing so, the mainstream parties adopted an understanding of self-determination prevalent during the colonial period to reject the Madheshi demand by justifying it on ideological as well as constitutional grounds. Ideologically, they argued that since Nepal has a mixed demographic composition in the Tarai region, providing autonomy to one particular community would frustrate other marginalized communities and invite ethnic tensions. Constitutionally, they adopted measures to neutralize the spirit of ethnic autonomy. These included: 1) silence about the Madheshi contribution to the state’s political transformation; 2) the non-ethnic demarcation of the sub-state borders; and 3) the symmetrical division of state powers and resources.

Keywords: Colonial interpretation, self-determination, ethnic autonomy, the Madheshi peoples