Kathmandu, December 27, 2022 (PPI-OT):The former Maoist leader, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, widely known as Prachanda, has become the prime minister of Nepal, signalling a potential foreign policy shift in the Himalayan nation, causing worries for India. As leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Center), Prachanda, 68, finished third in the November 20 elections behind the sitting prime minister, Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepali Congress, and K.P. Sharma Oli, a former prime minister who leads the Unified Marxist-Leninists.
While Deuba is widely seen as pro-India and pro-America, Prachanda and Oli are seen as pro-China. Since the election, none of the contenders had the votes to form a government on their own. But weeks of backdoor talks led to Prachanda’s emerging as Prime Minister with support from K.P Sharma Oli. He previously served as prime minister in 2008 and 2016 – both stints lasting less than a year. Following the announcement of Prachanda’s selection, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chinese Embassy in Nepal and the US Embassy in Kathmandu extended their congratulations.
Oli, who served as prime minister between 2018 and 2021, challenged India for its illegal occupation of the Nepalese territories. He bitterly accused New Delhi of economic blackmail and claimed Indian forces were trying to unseat him. Oli courted investment from China, including projects under the Belt and Road Initiative that have mostly failed to materialize so far. India has been blackmailing for long the landlocked Nepal, a country of about 30 million people, which has meagre manufacturing and agricultural exports – but a surplus of hydropower. As per experts, India had blocked 800 megawatts of hydropower exports from Nepal simply because they were generated from Chinese-built dams.
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