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Nepal to seize royal lands, king to be "normal citizen" by Deepesh Shrestha
Sat Aug 5, 8:31 AM ET
KATHMANDU (AFP) - Nepal plans to seize lands owned by King Gyanendra and other royal family members and distribute them to the poor as it moves toward treating the monarch like a "normal citizen," a minister said.
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Legislation limiting the amount of property the king can hold will be drafted once an inventory of royal properties is completed, Land Reforms Minister Prabhu Narayan Chaudhary said on Saturday in Kathmandu, the capital of the impoverished Himalayan nation.
"The seized royal property will be nationalized and handed over to poor farmers and landless people," the minister told AFP, without giving a timeframe for the policy's implementation.
"The king and the royal family members will be treated just like normal citizens," he added.
Under the law, Nepalese people are allowed to own 7.45 hectares (18.4 acres) of land, the minister said.
But according to a preliminary land reform ministry report, the king and royal family members own 1,729 hectares (4,274 acres) of land, including palaces and forests, the minister said.
"In addition to this, we believe the king and his family members possess other land in the country. The government has directed all land revenue offices to furnish details within the next eight days," Chaudhary said.
News of the plan to strip the king of his land was praised in Kathmandu's streets, where there were massive street protests earlier this year that forced Gyanendra to give up absolute rule in April.
"The king has been enjoying a lavish life while we've been suffering. He should own property equivalent to that owned by a normal citizen," said 30-year-old school teacher Tek Narayan Jha.
"The move will show there is equal justice for all," Jha said.
The development was welcomed elsewhere too.
"The monarch's property is not his personal asset, it's provided by the state. It's good the government is taking a pro-people move by bringing the king under the law," said Rabindra Khanal, who teaches politics at Tribhuvan University.
Land is seen as an important source of livelihood in Nepal where employment is not guaranteed and there is no state security.
The announcement is the latest blow for the king who has already been stripped of his control over the army and legislative duties. He also faces a potentially massive tax bill.
The monarch, traditionally revered as the incarnation of the Hindu god of protection, Lord Vishnu, sacked the government and seized power in February 2005, saying the move was necessary to crush a deadly decade-old Maoist revolt.
But afterwards the sidelined political parties and Maoists formed an alliance to end his rule, staging huge demonstrations.
The Maoists are now set to enter mainstream politics after the new government agreed to a key rebel demand for elections to a constituent assembly to draft a fresh constitution that will, among other things, decide the future of the monarchy.
Republican sentiment has been rising. If the monarchy continues, the king is likely to occupy only a ceremonial role, analysts say.
Gyanendra was vaulted to the throne by the massacre of his popular brother King Birendra and most other members of the royal family in 2001.
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