Finance Minister Fails Flag: How Nepali Dignity Was Auctioned in Delhi

SB Shah - For any self-respecting and sovereign nation, its national flag is not just a combination of colors or a simple piece of cloth; it is a living symbol of the country's dignity, self-respect, and sovereign existence. Even the minimum rules of international diplomatic code of conduct and basic etiquette state that in any formal meeting or bilateral discussion between two sovereign countries, the national flags of both nations must be presented with equal size, equal height, and full respect. However, the 'supernatural' and novel diplomatic scene seen during the recent visit of our supreme scholar and economics 'grand guru', Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle to India, has exposed the immaturity, helplessness, and subservient mindset of this so-called 'child government' nakedly on the street.

The complete disappearance of the Nepali flag on one side during the office room talks with the Indian counterpart, and even worse, the placement of the Indian flag behind the seated Nepali representatives during delegation-level meetings can be nothing other than a diplomatic 'miracle'. Trying to satisfy oneself by showing a micro-sized flag placed like an object of pity in front of India's grand and massive flag on the table is an even more shameful and ridiculous scene. Such 'wisdom' and diplomatic greatness of smiling while placing another country's flag in the space where one's own delegation is seated can rarely be found in world history.

This incident cannot be dismissed merely as a technical error or a routine diplomatic 'blunder'. When Rastriya Swatantra Party's founding General Secretary Dr. Mukul Dhakal made serious allegations against President Rabi Lamichhane and Vice President Dr. Swarnim Wagle, claiming they were trying to make Nepal dependent like India's new state or Bhutan, many thought it was just a political stunt. However, the scene in the Delhi meeting room where the very existence of the Nepali flag disappeared and the meeting was held under the shadow of the Indian flag raises a serious question of whether there was a deep shadow of truth in Dr. Dhakal's allegation. Is the real application of the controversial statement previously given by Dr. Wagle that 'imperialist powers have their own compulsions' taking place right at this diplomatic table? Was failing to save one's own country's national flag and staring helplessly at another's flag while visiting Delhi also a 'compulsion' towards those imperialist powers?

On the other hand, while Prime Minister Balendra Shah himself is publicly raising the issue of India encroaching on Nepal's borders and geographical territory, the shrinking and suppressing of the size and existence of the national flag at the diplomatic table in this manner is extremely meaningful. Encroachments of soil in border areas and the suppression of the flag—the symbol of national self-respect—on diplomatic platforms are national insults of the exact same nature. Using a flag that is significantly smaller and humiliated compared to the Indian flag is a direct attack on Nepal's sovereignty.

This 'child government', accustomed to running the country on loose, light, and social media populism, will hardly understand the gravity of national dignity and diplomatic decorum. For the child representatives of the 'child government', having or not having a flag, or whether the flag's size is small or big, probably makes no difference at all. But it is vital for the sovereign Nepali people to understand this clearly. In the past, KP Sharma Oli at least raised nationalist slogans—even if hollow and spectacle-driven—and put on a show of taking a stand on diplomatic platforms. But this government, unable to even save that hollow stance and showy self-respect, has started showing an even worse and pitiful spectacle.

What national interest can the Nepali people expect from such helpless leadership that cannot maintain the equal size and dignity of its own country's flag in bilateral meetings, bows its head before neighbors surrendering national self-respect, and cannot claim equal status? The national flag should have been used with equal size and supreme respect, but this diplomatic subservience and incompetence of the 'child government' has once again bowed the heads of all of Nepal and Nepalis in shame before the world.