Ram Chandra Paudel is Nepal’s new president

The Nepali Congress candidate wins with the support of the prime minister and the Maoists. The Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) pulled out of the ruling coalition as a result. According to analysts, Nepal’s period of political instability has not yet ended.

 


Kathmandu (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Ram Chandra Paudel, a senior leader of the Nepali Congress, is the new president of Nepal.

The Nepali parliament chose him over Subas Nembang, the candidate proposed by the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) whose alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) broke down after the latter decided to throw its support behind Ram Chandra Paudel.

Four ministers from the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist quit the cabinet of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, leader of the Maoist Centre, and the party pulled out of the ruling coalition, forcing the prime minister to call for a new vote of confidence in parliament, expected by the end of the month.

“The phase of political instability in Nepal has not ended despite the fact we had a successful national election and a new coalition government in place,” said Dhruba Adhikary, an independent analyst in Kathmandu, speaking to Al Jazeera.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is a former Maoist rebel known by the nickname Prachanda (fierce); he came to power with Marxist-Leninist support after elections in November last year did not produce a clear winner.

In foreign policy, Dahal has pursued a balancing act between China and India, which are competing for influence in small Himalayan nation.

After an election, the prime minister traditionally travels to Beijing or Delhi, but the current office holder has not yet announced such a visit.

Nepal is struggling to recover economically after the COVID-19 pandemic, which has stopped the flow of foreign tourists, who visit the country mainly to trek or climb the Himalayas.

The monarchy was abolished in 2008 and the country has had eight different governments in the last 10 years