Shaky-shaky

Dissatisfaction with the Oli government—and his generation of leaders—runs wide and deep.

Pretty much since its formation on July 15 last year, speculations have swirled over an imminent collapse of the Congress-UML government. On the eve of Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba’s ‘medical trip’ to Thailand earlier this month on April 20, these speculations reached a fever pitch. A quick ouster of the KP Sharma Oli government was being predicted. Oli’s UML feared that Deuba had gone to Bangkok not so much for medical treatment, but to hold dialogue with delegates of ‘external powers’ so as to create the right conditions for the dismissal of the federal government. But upon his return to Kathmandu on April 25, Deuba was quick to shoot down such ‘idle speculations’ and said the coalition will endure. Speaking the next day, Oli could not suppress his mirth as he taunted opposition leaders who had been banking on the fall of his government after Deuba’s return. Oli’s taunts aside, his government continues to face serious threats, mostly from inside the country. For none of the major bones of contention between the country’s two largest parties and major constituents of the current government has been removed.