NEPAL’S prime minister KP Oli resigned ahead of a no-confidence motion being brought against his government. Nepal has had twenty four Prime ministers in twenty six years showing the instability of Nepal politics. It has always been difficult to arrive at a consensus on key issues. The drafting of a Constitution missed many deadlines. The statue finally adopted did not meet the demands of Nepal’s Madhesis. The Madhesi agitation came too ahead demanding fair representation in state bodies and reorganisation of Nepal’s federal structure. Nepal’s politicians put the blame on India for inciting the Madhesis. For nine months, Oli had been spearheading the anti-India offensive, especially for the five month long blockade in the Terai region. He visited China and tried to leverage Chinese influence to pressurize India. Oli had no serious intention of listening to Madhesi demands and he also faced internal rivalry in his Maoist party.
CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Dahal Prachanda is likely to be Prime Minister again. He will have the backing of the Nepali Congress. The new leadership should address three main issues. First, genuine Madhesi grievances should be dealt with in a constitutional manner. Second, it should take the job of governance seriously and speed up reconstruction following the massive earthquake of April 2015. Third, it should mend its fences with India removing all doubts about India playing a Big Brotherly role interfering in Nepal politics.
