Prachanda used his India visit to his political benefit, parry domestic criticism Premium

Opposition parties and Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda’s critics have accused him of handing over the multi-billion-dollar projects to India on a platter, without any competitive bidding; and they have accused him of pandering to Nepali nationalist sections and appeasing Narendra Modi with his puja rituals display at the Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain.

After his return from India earlier this month, Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ kept himself quite busy — justifying how successful his trip to the south was. In doing so, he even played up the visit at times, just as Opposition parties dismissed it as “ritualistic”.

One of the much talked about aspects of the visit was the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to export up to 10,000 MW of electricity from Nepal to India over a period of 10 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, too, made an announcement on June 1 to this effect during a joint press briefing following delegation-level talks. The MoU followed bilateral agreements on India building at least two hydropower plants in Nepal.

However, there’s a catch. Opposition parties and Mr. Prachanda’s critics have accused him of handing over the multi-billion-dollar projects to India on a platter, without any competitive bidding.

Two other issues that became a source of criticism for Mr. Prachanda were his statement on “swapping” the disputed Kalapani area with India for a strip of land in the Indian territory, and an elaborate puja offered by him at the Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain. Mr. Prachanda, an erstwhile revolutionary known for his staunch nationalist posture and never missing a chance to stoke anti-India sentiments, has had a tough time convincing his critics at home.

Observers say Mr. Prachanda, who had been eagerly waiting for a trip to India since having taken charge as Prime Minister on December 25, 2022, used his four-day visit from May 31-June 3 to appease New Delhi, after sensing the weak domestic turf he was standing on.

Nepali Prime Ministers have traditionally been known to make a dash to New Delhi after assuming power. Their stated reason is the strengthening of bilateral ties; the two countries share historical and close relations, with an 1,800-km open border allowing citizens to move freely — a unique feature between any two nations in the modern-day world. But what’s also true is, observers say, one of their major goals is to be in Delhi’s good books to remain in power.