Aftershocks from the announcement of ‘leftist unification’ continue to get priority on the front pages of broadsheet dailies published in Kathmandu on Sunday. Nepal’s two major political parties have announced their plans to forge an electoral alliance for the upcoming elections, and when the elections are over, enter into a merger.
Important
New Delhi ‘surprised’ by leftist alliance
Annpaurna Post, which had earlier reported that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called off his impending visit to Nepal in the aftermath of the leftist alliance, reports in its Sunday edition that Nepal watchers in New Delhi have been surprised by the communist unity bid in Nepal. In its report from the Indian capital, the paper says that Maoist Centre Chairman Prachanda was unhappy with Sher Bahadur Deuba for taking up the issue of constitution amendment with Modi during his visit to India. The paper quotes Congress-I leader Manishanker Aiyar as saying that the developments in Nepal are part of its internal affairs and India should not comment on it. However, Nihar Nayak from the Indian think-tank AIDSS says China is aggressively pushing its diplomatic ties with Nepal, and India should not believe the Nepal is still in its sphere of influence.
RJP-Forum Nepal alliance excites Madhesh
Two Madhesh-based parties, formerly part of Madheshi Morcha, the alliance which resorted to protests following the promulgation of the constitution in September 2015, have agreed to forge an electoral alliance for the upcoming polls. The alliance between RJPN and Upendra Yadav-led Forum Nepal can be a game-changer for Madesh. Republica says that the Nepali Congress won most seats in the local election in Province 2, but the votes received by the two allies together exceeds that of the Nepali Congress. Similarly, Nagarik says the alliance has proposed that two-third of the seats be shared between the two parties and the rest be shared with the Nepali Congress.
Ready to quit govt, says Prachanda
The Kathmandu Post quotes Maoist leader Prachanda to say that his party is ready to leave the government if the Prime Minister wants his party out. Similarly, Kantipur reports that the new communist alliance has told the Nepali Congress that political polarisation should not affect the elections. Both parties say that the alliance is not an anti-Congress grouping and the remarks NC leaders are making are unacceptable. The Himalayan Times also has a similar report.
District party committees recommend candidates
As the date for filing candidacy for the upcoming elections approaches near, major political parties have started receiving recommendations from their district bodies. Naya Patrika has a compiled list of leaders who have been recommended so far. According to the paper, Prime Minister Deuba has been recommended to contest federal polls from his hometown Dadeldhura, UML leader Oli from Jhapa-5 and Siraha-1, UML’s Madhav Kumar Nepal from Kathmandu-2, Rautahat-1 and Rauthat-4. Similarly, Maoist leader Prachanda has been recommended from Chitwan-3 and his comrade Narayan Kaji Shrestha from Gorkha-2.
Ignored
Qatar trains workers in languages except for Nepali
Kantipur and The Kathmandu Post say that Qatar is preparing to provide work-related training to migrant workers involved in the construction of stadia for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in their respective mother tongues. However, the oil-rich Gulf state has not included Nepali on its list of languages. This is likely to affect more than 50,000 Nepalis working on various World Cup-related projects in Qatar.
Nepal-India EPG takes up border management issue
The Himalayan Times says the meeting of India-Nepal EPG in Kathmandu has taken up the issue of managing opening borders between the two countries. It says that there is currently a ‘double standard’ in place whereby people travelling by air are asked to produce ID cards but those travelling overland need not show any proof of ID. The meeting, which continues on Sunday, is likely to take up issues related to water next.
Interesting
Govt collects Rs 14 billion for Budhi Gandaki
The government has already collected Rs 14 billion in ‘cess’ for the much-hyped 1,200 MW Budhi Gandaki project in one year. According to Karobar, the government levied Rs 5 on every litre of diesel and petrol coming into Nepal to collect the revenue. The project was controversially handed over to a Chinese company under the Engineering Procurement, Construction with Finance (EPCF) model.
