The correct matches between the countries (List-I) and their respective political developments (List-II) are as follows:
(A) Bhutan - (III) Constitutional Democracy
Bhutan transitioned from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional monarchy with the first democratic elections in 2008. Bhutan is indeed a landlocked country in South Asia with a constitutional monarchy. India is involved in big hydroelectric projects in Bhutan and remains the Himalayan kingdom’s biggest source of development aid.
(B) Sri Lanka - (IV) Ethnic Conflict
Sri Lanka has experienced an 'ethnic conflict between the Tamil speakers and Sinhala speakers'. A civil war was fought between the government and the Tamil Tigers, which ended in 2009. In spite of the ethnic conflict, Sri Lanka has registered considerable economic growth and recorded high levels of human development. Sri Lanka was one of the first developing countries to successfully control the rate of growth of population, the first country in the region to liberalise the economy, and it has had the highest per capita gross domestic product (GDP) for many years right through the civil war. Despite the ravages of internal conflict, it has maintained a democratic political system. In 1987, the government of India for the first time got directly involved in the Sri Lankan Tamil question. India signed an accord with Sri Lanka and sent troops to stabilise relations between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamils. Eventually, the Indian Army got into a fight with the LTTE. The presence of Indian troops was also not liked much by the Sri Lankans. They saw this as an attempt by India to interfere in the internal affairs of Sri Lanka. In 1989, the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) pulled out of Sri Lanka without attaining its objective.
(C) Pakistan - (II) Military Rule to Democracy
Pakistan has experienced several periods of military rule, with transitions back to civilian democracy.
(D) Nepal - (II) Constitutional Monarchy
Nepal was a constitutional monarchy until the abolition of the monarchy in 2008, after which it was declared a republic.
Nepal was a Hindu kingdom in the past and then a constitutional monarchy in the modern period for many years. The king accepted the demand for a new democratic constitution in 1990, in the wake of a strong pro-democracy movement. During the nineties, the Maoists of Nepal were successful in spreading their influence in many parts of Nepal. They believed in armed insurrection against the monarch and the ruling elite. This led to a violent conflict between the Maoist guerrillas and the armed forces of the king. For some time, there was a triangular conflict among the monarchist forces, the democrats and the Maoists. In 2002, the king abolished the parliament and dismissed the government, thus ending even the limited democracy that existed in Nepal.
In April 2006, there were massive, countrywide, pro-democracy protests. The struggling pro-democracy forces achieved their first major victory when the king was forced to restore the House of Representatives that had been dissolved in April 2002. Nepal's transition to democracy is almost complete. In 2008, Nepal became a democratic republic after abolishing the monarchy. In 2015, it adopted a new constitution.
Therefore, the correct answer is: (1) (A)-(III), (B)-(IV), (C)-(II), (D)-(I) |
