Bhattarai was bright‚ quiet

NEW DELHI: A PhD candidate at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s, Nepal’s new Prime Minister Dr Baburan Bhattarai has left a deep impression among friends and teachers for his academic excellence.

JNU Prof Kamal Mitra Chenoy has known Bhattarai since the university days.

He describes Bhattarai as a bright, quiet and soft-spoken personality, pragmatic leader and a deep thinker.

According to Prof Chenoy, Bhattarai’s PhD dissertation became an international story.

When Bhattarai had finished 2-3 chapters of his thesis, he met with an accident and briefly lost his memory. Undeterred, Bhattarai started from the scratch and yet finished the thesis well in time.

“That shows his brilliance and dedication to work.”

Prof Chenoy met Bhattarai in his constituency during 2008 CA elections after a long gap, yet, to his wonder, Bhattarai instantly recognised him.

Bhattarai would plan things well ahead in a far-sighted manner. “He did things at the JNU exceptionally well. Bhattarai was well-received here,” the professor added.

Chenoy believes Bhattarai’s association with JNU played a key role in shaping his political ideologies because at that time many students were into Marxism because of the success of communism in Eastern Europe and Russia and sorry state of Indian workers. “We were all inclined to Marxism, although we later adjusted to the new changes that dawned after the fall of communist regimes in Eastern Europe and Russia in the early 90s,” Chenoy recalls.

According to Chenoy, Bhattarai would have been a different man if he were a student at the JNU today.

According to Prof Chenoy, Nepali Maoists were different from Indian Maoists as they, aware of the flawed one-party communist rule that led to the fall of communism in Russia and Eastern Europe, gave up their armed struggle.

Prof Chenoy describes Bhattrai’s political line of democratic federalism as a pragmatic approach. Bhattarai’s challenge is to bring the peace process to a logical conclusion by taking all stakeholders into confidence, according to Chenoy.

“I hope Bhattarai takes those challenges for the sake of Nepal and thus leaves his mark as a dynamic leader, not because I support any political party but because Nepal needs to overcome the challenge of political transition without further delay.”