Elizabeth Roche
Political unrest has once again roiled India’s neighborhood. In 2022 and 2024, people’s anger against corrupt and inept governance forced out elected governments in Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, respectively.
Earlier this month, it was the turn of another of India’s neighbors, Nepal.
On September 9, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned a day after violent protests led by Gen-Z erupted in the capital Kathmandu and quickly spread to other cities.
A new interim prime minister, Sushila Karki, was sworn in on September 13. Karki, a former chief justice of Nepal who was chosen by the protestors, aged mainly between 13 and 28 years, now has the formidable task of guiding the reconstruction of the country’s institutions, literally and figuratively.
While discontent with governance has been simmering for a while in Nepal, the implosion of the Nepali government was sudden and caught neighboring India off guard. India surrounds Nepal on three sides and provides the landlocked Himalayan country with access to the sea. It plays a major role not only in Nepal’s trade and economic development but also in its domestic politics.
New Delhi was preparing to host Oli on his first visit after a change of government in July 2024. India’s Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri was in Kathmandu on August 18 to invite Oli to visit India on September 16 for the long-overdue visit.
Traditionally, India has been the first port of call for any new prime minister and foreign minister of Nepal. However, Oli visited China, Nepal’s northern neighbor and India’s strategic rival, first. It is widely believed that with an invitation from India to visit not materializing — New Delhi is said to be upset with Oli’s pro-China policies — Oli headed to Beijing in December.
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