With new Prez, time for stability in Nepal

With the election of veteran Nepali Congress (NC) leader Ram Chandra Paudel as the country’s new President, Nepal’s turbulent politics has hopefully turned a corner. Paudel won more than double the votes of his rival. While the presidency is a nominal post, President-elect Paudel is nonetheless tasked with upholding the Constitution. Outgoing President Bidhya Devi Bhandari did enormous damage to the office of the President by putting party loyalty over constitutional norms and the health of Nepal’s nascent democracy. Nepal has been reeling under political instability for years and the past few weeks saw its parliamentarians sink to new depths. Barely two months after Pushpa Kamal Dahal became Prime Minister at the head of a coalition led by his Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre (CPN-MC) and supported by the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML), the latter pulled out of the government. Incidentally, it was over the candidate for the presidential election that Dahal and the UML parted ways. Dahal was in favour of Paudel for the post of President, which was not acceptable to the UML as he is a Nepali Congress leader. After the UML walked out of the ruling coalition, Dahal joined hands with the NC, with which he had allied for the general election, only to spurn it during government formation in late December and go with the now-foe, now-friend UML.

Power rather than programmatic understanding draws parties and politicians to make and unmake governments in Nepal. This underlies the political instability in the country. While the Nepali people are used to the ‘revolving door’ politics of its leaders, Dahal’s switching of partners in recent weeks is unprecedented. That it comes at a time when the country is staring at an economic crisis is worrying. Nepal’s development partners – India, the US and China – are keen to get projects they are funding off the ground. But with Dahal preoccupied with politicking rather than governing the country, development is at a standstill.

India has almost always been the destination of the first foreign visit of a Nepali Prime Minister. But Dahal is yet to visit New Delhi. India is likely relieved by the exit of the UML from the ruling coalition. After all, it was during UML chief K P Sharma Oli’s term as Prime Minister that India-Nepal relations frayed seriously. That the new government comprises the NC would also have evoked relief in New Delhi as the NC has generally been mindful of Indian security concerns. However, political turmoil in Nepal continues and this would provide space for China to meddle in its politics. It is therefore imperative that India engages Dahal and the new government immediately to ensure stability in the Himalayan neighbour.