Bhutanese king born in Nepal
On Friday, April 30, 2010, two dailies in Kathmandu — Kathmandu Post and Nagarik – leaked out some secrets that I had never known. I think, majority of the Bhutanese population was unaware of this important fact.
In end 70s and early 80s, Bhutan had good relationship with Nepal that both the countries were under dictatorial and active monarchy. Nepal has already lost its hereditary institution while Bhutan retains in a changed form – that form that failed in Nepal after 18 years of practice.
Amidst this warm relation, one boy of Bhutanese origin born in a hospital in Kathmandu, without anyone’s notice. The government in Bhutan, Nepal or any other did not notice his birth not knowing that he was from a royal family.
The boy’s mother had not tied knot with Jigme Singye Wangchuk, which happened some eight years later only. Tshering Yongdon, a never-married pregnant women and daughter of a senior Bhutan army officer Yab Ugyen Dorji on February 21, 1980, gave birth to a boy later named as Jigme Gesar Namgyal.
This boy was eight years when his mother married to Bhutanese king Jigme Singye in 1988 and forthright announced the heir to the throne – the Crown Prince. To straight, a boy who was not a royal at birth turned out to be a royal at aged 8 and ascended to the throne in Thimphu on December 14, 2006, whose formal coronation celebrations were held on November 6, 2008.
The king formally spoke that he was born in one of the hospitals in Kathmandu during the meeting with Nepalese Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal on Thursday in Thmphu. King had reached to Nepal’s resident building to convey his emotional attachment with Nepal.
According to the Bhutanese citizenship act, to be a genuine Bhutan, a person must be born in Bhutan. Now, it is up to critics to speculate things to their best interests. Let me not mess up things.
Jigme Gesar was his birth name, which has changed to Jigme Khesar by the time he ascended the throne. I learnt his name as Gesar in my Bhutan’s school days. I have no idea when he changed his name. Here are few links to show that he was named Gesar.
1. Para 4, line 3: http://countrystudies.us/bhutan/45.htm
2. Day 11, last line: http://countrystudies.us/bhutan/45.htm
3. First para, line 6: http://www.bhutaneserefugees.com/index.php?id=26
4. Lara 6, line 2: http://www.nytimes.com/1988/10/31/world/bhutan-lifts-the-royal-wedding-veil.html?pagewanted=1
5. Line in: http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=41214
In one occasion, my former science teacher made jokes out of this changed name. Let him know if that was true. He was compelled to change Gesar to Khesar while in Britain for studies. Classmates ridiculed his name and called him as Gay Sir instead of Gesar, thereby forcing this crown prince to adopt Khesar as the official name in records.
Anyway, it was interesting to know that the king was born in Nepal, and has right by birth to be citizen of Nepal. He has expressed his emotional attachment with Nepal, if not with Nepalese people or people of Nepali origin. Things will prove how emotional is he with relation with Nepal and Ethnic Nepalis.