K P Sharma Oli Appointed As Nepal's Prime Minister For 4th Term

Kathmandu: K P Sharma Oli, a pro-China leader, was appointed Nepal’s Prime Minister for a fourth term on Sunday. He leads the Communist Party of NepalUnified Marxist Leninist, which will form a coalition government with the support of the Nepali Congress, the largest party in Parliament.

About Nepal's Ties With India Under K P Sharma Oli

Oli, a wily politician who has wrecked many governments in Nepal in the past, had endangered ties with India during his first term when he had publicly criticised India for interfering in Nepal’s internal matters and accused the southern neighbour of toppling his government.

In his second term, his government redrew Nepal’s political map by incorporating three strategically key Indian territories. India had termed as “untenable” the “artificial enlargement” of the territorial claims by Nepal over areas which India maintains belong to it. Again, in July 2020, Oli offended Indian sensibilities by claiming that India had appropriated Ram and that the real Ayodhya was in Nepal, forcing the Foreign Ministry in Kathmandu to issue a clarification.

According to an analyst, once Oli was perceived as being close to India, but later he warmed up to Nepal’s northern neighbour (China). Under the leadership of Oli, UML contested the election in 2015 with the political narrative that India had imposed a kind of blockade against Nepal. One has to now wait and watch his actions in the coming months on how he deals with India and China, especially on Beijing's ambitious Belt and Road Initiative projects in the country.