Ram Raja Prasad Singh
Encyclopedia
Ram Raja Prasad Singh (b. 1936) is a Nepal
ese politician. In July 2008, Singh was proposed by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) as their candidate in the first presidential election
in the country.
Singh hails from Saptari district
, eastern Nepal. His father, Jaya Mangal Prasad Singh was a wealthy landowner. Singh's first encounter with the realities of political life came abruptly at the age of seven. In 1942 the India
n socialist leaders Jayprakash Narayan and Ram Manohar Lohia
came to Nepal to mobilize support for Quit India Movement
and organise the formation of a guerrilla army to fight against British colonial rule. The two stayed at Singh's household. One day Lohia and Narayan, along with three other comrades, were caught by Nepalese police and their weaponry was seized. Singh's father and the remaining guerrilla soldiers attacked the detention centre and freed the two Indian leaders. Jaya Mangal Prasad Singh was later arrested and sentenced for the killing of two policemen during the raid. Ram Raja Prasad Singh and his brother Laxman were made to stay in jail with their father. They were released after India became independent.
Ram Raja Prasad Singh went on to study law. Once, whilst studying at Delhi University, he was able to meet with the Latin America
n revolutionary leader Che Guevara
. Guevara advised Singh to take up guerrilla struggle in Nepal. Singh is probably the only Nepalese politician who met with Guevara.
Singh, a young Supreme Court lawyer, contested one of the four Graduates seats in the 1971 Rastriya Panchayat election
. Singh won the seat on a platform of restoring parliamentary democracy in Nepal, and his victory was seen as a humiliation of the regime. Whilst several other candidates for the graduate seats had declared their wish for gradual democratic reforms (17 candidates contested on a common reformist platform), Singh was the sole candidate to called for immediate transition to democracy.
The presiding officer of the Rastriya Panchayat was reluctant to let Singh be sworn-in along with the other members of the assembly. He was arrested by plainclothes policemen inside the lobby of the assembly. A special tribunal sentenced him. On August 26, 1971, he was given a royal pardon and could later be sworn-in as a member of the Rastriya Panchayat. After his release, Singh continued to be a vocal advocate of democratic change and began organising public meetings in different parts of the country.
In 1976 he established Nepal Janabadi Morcha
(Nepal Democratic Front) a leftwing political movement in Nepal.
Singh claimed responsibility for the 1985 bombings in Kathmandu. He was convicted of the bombings and his property was confiscated by the government. However, he managed to escape Nepal and went into exile in India
. At least eight people were killed, including a member of parliament. In the capital, the blasts went off near the royal palace
, at the deluxe Hotel de l'Annapurna owned by the royal family, Singh Durbar, the prime minister's office, and parliament. Bombs also went off at the Bhairahawa airport, Nepalganj and Mahendranagar in the west as well as Birgunj, Janakpur, Biratnagar and Jhapa in the east.
He returned to Nepal in 1990.
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
ese politician. In July 2008, Singh was proposed by the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) as their candidate in the first presidential election
Nepalese presidential election, 2008
An indirect presidential election was held in Nepal on 19 July 2008 with a presidential run-off on 21 July. The Nepalese Constituent Assembly elected in April 2008 elected a new President and Vice-President after the Fifth Amendment to the Interim Constitution was passed on 14 July...
in the country.
Singh hails from Saptari district
Saptari District
Saptari District of 570,282. Saptari is renowned for its agricultural output, and is bordered on the east by the massive Sapt Koshi river.Significant towns are Rajbiraj, the district centre, Hanumannagar, and Fattepur with the area government "Matsya Palan Kendra" fish farm.The famous Chhinna...
, eastern Nepal. His father, Jaya Mangal Prasad Singh was a wealthy landowner. Singh's first encounter with the realities of political life came abruptly at the age of seven. In 1942 the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n socialist leaders Jayprakash Narayan and Ram Manohar Lohia
Ram Manohar Lohia
Rammanohar Lohia was an Indian freedom fighter and a socialist political leader.-Early life:Lohia was born in a village Akbarpur in Ambedkar Nagar district, Uttar Pradesh, in India to Hira Lal, a nationalist and Chanda,a teacher. He was born to Marwari Maheshwari family. His mother died when he...
came to Nepal to mobilize support for Quit India Movement
Quit India Movement
The Quit India Movement , or the August Movement was a civil disobedience movement launched in India in August 1942 in response to Mohandas Gandhi's call for immediate independence. Gandhi hoped to bring the British government to the negotiating table...
and organise the formation of a guerrilla army to fight against British colonial rule. The two stayed at Singh's household. One day Lohia and Narayan, along with three other comrades, were caught by Nepalese police and their weaponry was seized. Singh's father and the remaining guerrilla soldiers attacked the detention centre and freed the two Indian leaders. Jaya Mangal Prasad Singh was later arrested and sentenced for the killing of two policemen during the raid. Ram Raja Prasad Singh and his brother Laxman were made to stay in jail with their father. They were released after India became independent.
Ram Raja Prasad Singh went on to study law. Once, whilst studying at Delhi University, he was able to meet with the Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
n revolutionary leader Che Guevara
Che Guevara
Ernesto "Che" Guevara , commonly known as el Che or simply Che, was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, intellectual, guerrilla leader, diplomat and military theorist...
. Guevara advised Singh to take up guerrilla struggle in Nepal. Singh is probably the only Nepalese politician who met with Guevara.
Singh, a young Supreme Court lawyer, contested one of the four Graduates seats in the 1971 Rastriya Panchayat election
Nepalese Rastriya Panchayat election, 1971
Elections to the Rastriya Panchayat were held in Nepal in 1971. At the time, the Rastriya Panchayat had 125 members; out of them 16 were appointed by the King, 90 were elected by Zonal Assemblies, 15 were elected by class organisations and 4 were elected by the graduates constituency.-District...
. Singh won the seat on a platform of restoring parliamentary democracy in Nepal, and his victory was seen as a humiliation of the regime. Whilst several other candidates for the graduate seats had declared their wish for gradual democratic reforms (17 candidates contested on a common reformist platform), Singh was the sole candidate to called for immediate transition to democracy.
The presiding officer of the Rastriya Panchayat was reluctant to let Singh be sworn-in along with the other members of the assembly. He was arrested by plainclothes policemen inside the lobby of the assembly. A special tribunal sentenced him. On August 26, 1971, he was given a royal pardon and could later be sworn-in as a member of the Rastriya Panchayat. After his release, Singh continued to be a vocal advocate of democratic change and began organising public meetings in different parts of the country.
In 1976 he established Nepal Janabadi Morcha
Nepal Janabadi Morcha
Nepal Janabadi Morcha is a leftwing political movement in Nepal. The group was founded in 1976, and worked clandestinely during the panchayat regime, and its chairman Ram Raja Prasad Singh lived in exile in India...
(Nepal Democratic Front) a leftwing political movement in Nepal.
Singh claimed responsibility for the 1985 bombings in Kathmandu. He was convicted of the bombings and his property was confiscated by the government. However, he managed to escape Nepal and went into exile in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. At least eight people were killed, including a member of parliament. In the capital, the blasts went off near the royal palace
Royal Palace
** Palace of Nakhchivan Khans, Nakhchivan* Belgium: Royal Palace of Brussels* Brazil** Paço Imperial** Paço de São Cristóvão** Summer Palace* Bulgaria: Royal Palace, today housing the National Art Gallery* Cambodia: Royal Palace of Cambodia* China...
, at the deluxe Hotel de l'Annapurna owned by the royal family, Singh Durbar, the prime minister's office, and parliament. Bombs also went off at the Bhairahawa airport, Nepalganj and Mahendranagar in the west as well as Birgunj, Janakpur, Biratnagar and Jhapa in the east.
He returned to Nepal in 1990.