Nepal president's no to monarchy

By Charles Haviland
BBC News, Kathmandu

Nepalese President Yadav gives his first interview since being elected

The first president of Nepal says he does not believe the country can ever return to being a monarchy.

Ram Baran Yadav told the BBC that violence was still a part of the country's politics.

But he said the people wanted peace and would not tolerate suppression in future. It was one of his first English interviews since being elected.

The last king, Gyanendra, was forced to stand down after Nepal's constituent assembly abolished the monarchy in May.

Different background

Mr Yadav is a peasant's son who interrupted his schooling to help in the fields. He is also a doctor who, as health minister, pioneered higher education in health.

Gyanendra was forced to step down as king this year

Ram Baran Yadav has a very different background from the former heads of state - the kings of the Shah dynasty.

He told the BBC that the people were now the sovereigns in Nepal and he could not envisage a comeback by the monarchy.

Elected by assembly members in July, Mr Yadav is still carving out a role for himself as president.

It is a largely ceremonial post, but he is saying some political things and is concerned that rising ethnic sentiment among many peoples here should not detract from Nepal's national unity.

"We have the diverse society, multi-ethnic, multilingual. As the president I will have to warn them, 'look - we will have to stand as a nation, because we are one'," he said, stressing that that was his role as president.

As president he is still performing the same ceremonial Hindu public functions as the former kings. Some have criticised this as Nepal is now officially a secular state.

Mr Yadav gave the impression that this conundrum is still being worked out. But he said that he was already making it his business to show his respect for minority faiths by attending worship at Buddhist temples, at mosques and churches.

Mr Yadav said that Nepal was still suffering political violence - in the south-east, where some harbour separatist sentiment - and also some perpetrated by the now governing Maoists.

But he said the people had voted in the Maoists to ensure they abandoned their guns.