Nepal witnessed political turbulence in 2022 that dramatically turned rivals into allies and throned former guerrilla leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' as the prime minister for a third time, as Kathmandu made efforts to balance ties with immediate neighbours India and China with high-profile talks and visits.
In a dramatic turn of events, Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' was appointed as the new prime minister of Nepal by President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Sunday.
Prachanda took the oath of office and secrecy from President Bhandari at an official ceremony at Shital Niwas.
Nepal's Unified Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist on Thursday demanded a suspension of the vote counting, alleging conspiracy after initial results showed the party trailing at third position in the constituent assembly elections.
In 2017, a retired R&AW officer conveyed that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was keen to get monarchy restored in Nepal and suggested that I support these efforts.
The air carriers' liability and insurance draft bill has proposed a five-fold increase in compensation in case of death or injury, the report said.
Eyewitnesses of the Nepalese passenger plane crash have said that they had a close shave as the Yeti Airlines plane, with 72 onboard, including five Indians, crashed near their settlement and a bomb-like blast was heard.
As Nepal undergoes a political transition, India on Friday pitched for implementing the country's Constitution by accommodating aspirations of all sections and assured it of all possible support amid China's efforts to gain ground in the Himalayan nation.
Nepal plunged into a political crisis after President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolved the House of Representatives and announced dates for mid-term elections at the recommendation of Prime Minister Oli on Sunday, sparking protests from a section of the ruling party and various opposition parties.
Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist leader Prachanda on Monday met Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kathmandu and expressed confidence that a "new chapter" has begun in Indo-Nepal ties.
There is a view that heavyweight portfolios like home, finance, defence and external affairs besides education and culture, two ministries with strong ideological hues, will be kept by the BJP, while its allies can get anywhere between five to eight cabinet berths.
In a press statement, the foreign ministry here said 10 Nepali nationals lost their lives in the recent attack by Hamas in Israel.
The exit of CPN-UML may not immediately affect the Prachanda-led government, which is supported by the Nepali Congress which has 89 lawmakers in the House.
The 76-year-old Nepali Congress president, who has served as the prime minister for a record fifth term, defeated his challenger party general secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa by 39 votes, officials said.
Here are the highlights of Modi's second day in Nepal.
According to the National Earthquake Monitoring and Research Centre, the earthquake with an epicentre in Jajarkot district was recorded at 11.47 pm.
With the support from eight political parties, 78-year-old Poudel's victory was certain. His rival Subas Chandra Nebmang had support of former prime minister KP Sharma-led CPN-UML.
'Gyanendra back on the throne would be bad news for the Nepali people. He may not have learnt from his experience, but we have.'
A powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake hit southern Turkey and northern Syria early Monday, toppling hundreds of buildings and killing at least 1,300 people. The toll is expected to rise further.
Three Madhesi leaders have supported Prachanda's candidacy.
Along with Modi, senior BJP leaders including Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari, Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar, all ministers in Modi 2.0 Cabinet, took oath as cabinet ministers at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. In all, 71 ministers were sworn-in along with Modi, taking the strength of the Union council to 72.
Engagement with neighbours is a strategic imperative, and not an option, asserts Rup Narayan Das.
The decision to remove Oli from the party's general membership was taken at the Standing Committee meeting of the faction led by former prime ministers Prachanda and Madhav Kumar Nepal after Oli failed to produce explanation to his recent moves as sought by party leadership, sources said.
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid's daylong "goodwill" visit to Nepal on July 9 will give him an opportunity to meet top functionaries of its interim election government as well as the leaders of the main political parties.
Bhutan firmly abides by the one-China principle meaning Taiwan and Tibet are part of China and stands ready to work with China for an early settlement of the boundary issue and advance the political process of establishing diplomatic relations, it said.
The 75-year-old veteran politician and Nepali Congress President took the oath of office and secrecy from President Bidya Devi Bhandari during a swearing-in ceremony which was delayed by over two hours.
The government had registered the amendment proposal in Parliament on May 22 after releasing the new political map of Nepal depicting Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limipiyadhura as its territories on May 18.
The proposed China visit of Oli, who took over as prime minister in October, is in marked contrast to the usual practice the new prime ministers of Nepal follow. Most of the Nepalese premiers have visited India, ahead of China.
The passengers included 10 foreigners, according to the state-run Nepal Television.
Did Oli turn to India when he realised that China was backing unity of the Nepal Communist Party rather than the government led by his faction?
'Keeping its financial interests in mind, China wants no enmity with the Nepalese government.'
Other world leaders too voiced concern against terrorism and vowed to fight it collectively.
Modi visited his 97-year-old mother Hiraba in Gandhinagar and took her blessings.
'The Prime Minister's remarks that India was conspiring to remove him was neither politically correct, nor diplomatically appropriate,'
The 70-year-old was the only contender in the election.
He said India wanted growth, development and peace in the region and was keen to utilise technology to pursue this goal for the shared prosperity.
New Delhi has reached out to neighbours like seldom before while singling Islamabad for criticism at international forums.
The move comes as the intra-party feud reached climax in the ruling NCP which has been witnessing months long tussle between two factions, one led by 68-year-old Oli and Party's chairman and another led by 66-year-old 'Prachanda', also the executive chair of the party and former premier.
Nepal plunged into a political crisis last Sunday after Oli, known for his pro-Beijing leanings, in a surprise move, recommended dissolving the 275-member House, amidst a tussle for power with former prime minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.
'The redrawing of the map with the inclusion of Kalapani area by Nepal and endorsement from the House of Representatives shows the KP Oli government's move to gain cheap popularity in the name of nationalism'
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