Democratic Innovations in Nepal : A Case Study of Political Acculturation/Bhuwan Lal Joshi and Leo E. Rose. Reprint. Kathmandu, Mandala Publications, 2004, xviii, 552 p., ISBN 99933-10-23-9.

    Contents: 1. Introduction to Nepal: i. The setting. 2. Historical background: i. The Shah and Rana political systems. ii. Oppositional politics under Rana rule. iii. The 1950 Revolution. 3. The search for Constitutional Democracy (1951-55): i. The "Revolutionary" governments. ii. King Tribhuwan's political experiments. iii. Party politics in postrevolutionary Nepal. iv. Policies and programs: 1951-55. v. The Tribhuwan period in retrospect. 4. Innovations in the "Interim" Political System (1955-59): i. King Mahendra's political innovations. ii. The prelude to the 1959 General Elections. iii. King Mahendra's first four years: the record. iv. The parties prepare for the elections. v. The 1959 Constitution and the General Elections. 5. Experiment with Parliamentary Democracy (1959-60): i. The elected Nepali Congress Government. ii. Party politics under the Nepali Congress Government. iii. Policies and programs of the Nepali Congress Government. iv. King Mahendra and Parliamentary Democracy. 6. Panchayat Raj (1961-64): i. The 1962 Constitution: experiments with "Guided" Democracy. ii. The politics of "Guided" democracy. iii. Political organizations and Panchayat Raj. iv. Policy and program of the Royal regime. 7. Conclusion: i. Patterns and trends in Nepal's political modernization. Notes. Bibliography. Glossary. Index. Maps: i. Political map of Nepal. ii. Zones and development districts of Nepal, 1963.

    "What happens when a highly segmented, traditional society begins to experiment with modern, basically alien political concepts in order to accelerate national development? This is the question that Messrs. Joshi and Rose attempt to answer in this book.

    Although the empirical focus of the book is restricted to the political acculturation of Nepal to a democratic form of government, this process can easily serve as a prototype for the study of politics in many newly emergent Afro-Asian countries.

    The choice of Nepal as a subject for intensive scrutiny in the light of political acculturation seems particularly appropriate. Long isolated from the outside world by international political considerations and geographic barriers, Nepal offers a social science laboratory for the study of processes of social change and transition. It has enjoyed historical continuity and territorial integrity as an independent political entity for many centuries, and has consequently developed rich indigenous cultural, social, and political traditions.

    When in 1950 the country was suddenly jolted out of its reverie by a revolution, partly induced by exigencies of international politics but firmly committed to the establishment of a democratic form of government, the Nepali elites became preoccupied with a mammoth political experiment in adapting a modern, essentially western, concept of government to a social context that lacked most of the basic prerequisites. The present study is a detailed, objective examination of this political process during the first fourteen years of the experiment." (jacket)

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