Nepali communists have seized the global limelight by uniquely indigenizing Marxism to achieve their national goals of stability and prosperity. They rose to power on the back of a popular vote. This marked a unique experiment of Marxism that differs from Soviet, Chinese, Cuban or Venezuelan models.  

And communists from around the world are witnessing the success of Nepali lefts with awe and curiosity, especially after the creation of monolithic Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) that is holding an absolute grip on the three-tiers of government in the country.

"The communist parties from different nations have been enthused by the unity and unprecedented success of Nepali communists," said CPN senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal. 

Mr. Nepal has just returned from Brazil where he shared the achievements of the Nepali communist movement and solicited the ideas for opening a Madan Bhandari Asian School of Marxism in Nepal. Named after the former general secretary of dissolved Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist - Leninist (CPN-UML), the would-be school seeks to propagate Marxist ideas and philosophy inside and outside the country.

Late Bhandari, who was killed in a mysterious jeep accident, has been credited with democratizing and popularizing the Nepali communist movement at a time when Soviet Union and its satellites states in Eastern Europe had collapsed. 

The Nepali version of Marxism has proved what Chinese leader Xi Jinping said: "Marxism is an open theoretical system. There is no sole, unchangeable pattern for socialism." At the heart of Marxism lies the vision of building a classless and equal egalitarian society but the methods of attaining it vary from country to country. The Soviet model of Marxism failed but the Chinese Communist Party developed it with their national characteristics and transformed China into a global power.

The Indian Communist Party (CPI) leader Pallav Sengupta noted that unification of the UML and Communist Party of Nepal - Maoist Centre was a landmark event that created ripples in the world.  

Sengupta visited Nepal to attend an international seminar on "Marxism and Socialism" recently organized in Kathmandu to mark the bicentenary of Karl Marx's birth. Altogether 22 communist and socialist parties from Nepal, India, China, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, North Korea, Russia, Vietnam, Laos, South Africa, Germany, Australia, Morocco, Venezuela and Zambia participated in it. 

The gathering became a viable forum for the CPN to share its success stories with other communist parties and sell its ideas. The conference highlighted the importance of Marxism in building a just, peaceful and prosperous world and hailed the ruling CPN for creatively applying Marxism based on the country's socio-economic and cultural realities.

There are historical reasons behind the feat of Nepali communists, who relentlessly fought against the feudal autocracy and led the democratic revolutions from the front. They participated in the elections, formed the government and introduced various social security schemes to win over the hearts of grassroots people.

They have adopted multiparty democracy, pluralism, fixed periodic elections, rule of law, independent judiciary, separation of powers and people's fundamental rights, stating they are not the prerogative of the bourgeois class alone.

However, despite their growing popularity, the Nepali communist parties, including the CPN have confronted several problems. They have turned into catch-all parties with insufficient ideological orientation for their cadres. While immersed in parliamentary politics, their ideals and values have taken a back seat. They have tasted power several times and certain leaders have become elites, alienating themselves from the masses. 

Here is another irony. Many NGOs with close ties with the ruling CPN are funded by Western countries that abhor Marxism. Some of them have been even accused of fuelling ethnic tension and intensifying religious conversion in the country. However, Prime Minister and CPN chair KP Sharma Oli has now tightened the screw on such freewheeling NGOs/INGOs following complaints that they have violated the government's code of conduct.

It is necessary for the CPN to promote inner-party democracy so as to check possible cultural and ideological deviation and bureaucratization of the party's upper structures.

In his interview to the U.S. magazine, Newsweek, in early 90s, Bhandari said: "In Nepal, Karl Marx lives." However, the Nepali communists have a long way to go before they really realize the maxim of their late leader. 

Ritu Raj Subedi is an associate editor of The Rising Nepal.

Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn.

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