V as in Victory... that's what everybody, well, almost everybody is talking about. We, the people, have won!!! For sure, we have made our presence felt, demands heard and brought a significant change.

There are some ifs and buts.

1. Girija is the new PM. With his track record, one automatically wonders if he sells us out. But then, who else do we have to fill those shoes? Anyway, this is a temporary position, when the permanent parliament gets ushered in, we can debate who deserves to be the PM.

2. King seems to have bowed to the pressure. But he is not out. I am sure he has few cards up his sleeves. When the negotiations happen, he will certainly try to solidify his position. Believe me, he ain't gonna sit there and take it. In fact, by making the conciliatory speech, he has once again put a wedge between Maoists and SPAs. Enemies divided are easier to defeat.

3. Maoists are not satisfied. Obviously, they were pulling for total REPUBLIC. And there are many who agree with them on that particular objective. But we have to go with people's collective decision. I hope Maoists will too. So far, it seems, they will wait for how matters firm up, especially in regards to Constituent Assembly.

So, the key word here is CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY. We have to watch out how this is handled.

- The mistakes of 1990 should not be repeated.
- There should be a referendum on whether to keep the monarchy or not and if we do, under what arrangement.
- There should be adequate provision for Maoists to join the mainstream.
- Armed forces should be squarely under civillian authority, not under the king.
- Those who committed atrocities during the protests should be brought to justice.

Well, finally, life in Kathmandu (and hopefully in Nepal as a whole) will return to normal. Price of onions need to come down from Rs.90/kg. Fuel should be made abundant. People should go back to work and make money. Banks should open. Heck, American Consular Office should open so that folks can get visas :-)

Well, in a sense, it could be back to mangal-man. At the same time, it could be a new glorious beginning... but only if we make it so.