Why is Nepal facing a political crisis again? | Coronavirus pandemic news

Kathmandu, Nepal- The President of Nepal disbanded the parliament for the second time in less than six months and plans to hold a general election, which triggered court challenges and plunged the country into a battle against the “catastrophic” surge in coronavirus infection. New political turmoil.

The Supreme Court will begin hearing a petition against President Vidia Devi Bhandari’s order on Thursday. Dozens of people have gathered in major cities in Nepal to oppose what they call the head of state to protect Prime Minister Khad Prasa. The appeals made by De Sharma Ollie’s political career.

After losing a vote of confidence earlier this month, 69-year-old Oli once again called for a new general election.

Critics say that Bhandari’s midnight order on Saturday (Friday at 6:15 pm) was given to the opposition leader Sher Bahadur Deuba of the Nepal Congress Party to clearly obtain the parliament. After supporting, he became the next prime minister of South Asian countries.

This crisis is threatening a new round of turmoil in the Himalayas. The country had 10 government changes in the years leading up to the 2017 general election. The elections brought Oli and his Nepalese Communist Party to power.

There are also concerns that the turmoil will exacerbate the COVID-19 crisis in Nepal.

The country’s hospitals have The oxygen and the bed are almost used up, And with the increase in the death toll, large-scale cremation is taking place in some areas.

“This is not the right time for power politics,” said Rojina Shrestha, a lecturer at the Rapti Baba campus in the western city of Tulsipur. “The top priority for politicians should be getting oxygen and vaccines. People are dying. Dissolving parliament and holding new elections will not benefit those who are fighting the epidemic.”

How did things worsen?

The recent crisis directly stems from the split of the Oli Nepal Communist Party. Since last year, a faction of the ruling party has accused the prime minister of authoritarianism and put him aside when making decisions and appointing members of main committees and supervisory bodies.

Nepalese President Bhandari has been criticized for dissolving parliament twice in less than six months [File: Thein Zaw/AP Photo]

Rumors of a possible vote of no confidence spread in December, and Bhandari dissolved the parliament at Oli’s request. The chamber was the first elected since the end of a bloody Maoist rebellion and the abolition of Nepal’s 200-year-old monarchy in 2008.

Bhandari’s decision to dissolve the House of Representatives in December immediately caused protests across the country and several petitions from the Supreme Court.

Nepal’s turmoil has alarmed Nepal, and its powerful northern neighbor, China, even sent envoys to mediate between the two Communist factions. But to no avail.

In February, the Supreme Court overturned Bhandari’s decision and restored parliamentary status, paving the way for a vote of no confidence in Oli. As expected, he failed, but the opposition struggled to form a government.

Bhandari finally set the deadline for showing majority votes for all parties on May 21.

In the 11th hour (the action shocked the Nepalese public), Oli and Deuba made a bet on leading the country, saying they had a majority in the 275-member House of Representatives.

Ollie said that he received the support of 153 parliamentarians, while Durbar claimed that 149 parliamentarians pledged their support. Together, their numbers exceed the total number of members of parliament, and it is obvious that one of the two claims to have more support than he actually has.

Bhandari did not bother to verify the signature, but made a second announcement, dissolving the parliament. She defended her decision, saying that neither Oli nor Deuba could prove that she had a majority. She continued to announce the date of the election. The election will be held in two phases, which will be held on November 12 and November 19, respectively, more than a year before the five-year term of Congress expires.

Health experts call on politicians to abandon differences and unite to defeat the epidemic [File: Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters]

Hari Sharma, an analyst in Kathmandu, said: “We are a prime minister here. He held elections arbitrarily. This is not because of challenges from the opposition, but because of divisions within the ruling party.” Based on a think tank Social Sciences Baha.

“However, in Nepal, we have a constitution that restricts frequent elections. Due to our government’s history of instability, the 2015 constitution, which has been in force for three and a half years, makes it difficult for anyone to dissolve the parliament. Steps.”

Sharma said these steps include allowing Ollie and Durbar to test their strength in Parliament.

He added: “The president must do everything possible to form a government. Unfortunately, she did not act in accordance with the constitutional procedures or its spirit.”

But Krishna Bhakta Pokharel, a member of parliament who was close to Olli, defended the dissolution of the parliament, saying that the opposition was trying to “steal” members of the ruling party.

“There is no choice but to conduct new elections. This is legal and constitutional compulsory, because the opposition party has neither provided an alternative, nor has the government run smoothly.” He told Al Jazeera.

How did the Nepalese react to this?

The call for re-election seems to have angered many people in Nepal.

The hashtag #NoVaccineNoVote has been popular in Nepal’s Twitter circles, and social media users urged Oli to focus on the pandemic, not the election.

With the rapid spread of the pandemic, face-to-face protests remain small and scattered. In the capital Kathmandu, some militants ignored the severe blockade and burned the statue of Oli on Tuesday, while in the western tourist center of Pokhara, dozens of demonstrators held a torch rally on Sunday night to protest Bhandari’s move.

Prime Minister Ollie accuses the opposition of creating instability [File: Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters]

At the same time, the five political parties and legislator groups opposed to the dissolution of the parliament filed a petition to the Supreme Court on Tuesday to recognize Durbar’s leadership claims.

Only 146 members of Congress signed the petition in the Supreme Court. The three members of Parliament of the Ollie Party had earlier supported Deuba’s proposal for the Premier League, but they did not sign the court petition.

One of the signatories told Al Jazeera: “This is not only an attack on the Constitution, but also an attack on the poor who are fighting epidemics and hunger.” “Everyone should protest this incremental step.”

Deba also criticized Bhandari’s actions in a statement on Saturday, which urged “all democratic forces” to stand up and protect the Constitution.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal, leader of the anti-Oli faction of the Communist Party of Nepal, told reporters in Kathmandu: “We believe that the court will finally make another ruling in favor of democracy, the constitution and against dictatorship.”

Bhandari did not comment on the allegations against her, but Ollie met with the press on Sunday and insisted that the president’s decision is entirely within her constitutional rights. He also accused his opponents of “participating in elections because they did not have the support of the people.”

They are afraid of elections. He said that their profession is to create instability.

How did the unrest hurt Nepal’s COVID-19 fight?

Medical staff expressed concern that the turmoil may further hinder Nepal’s fight against the pandemic.

In recent weeks, 30 million people in the country registered more than 8,000 cases every day, and almost half of all tests were positive.

Since the outbreak, health authorities have recorded 528,848 cases and more than 6,700 deaths, with a record number of deaths in recent weeks.

The surge in the epidemic has overwhelmed Nepal’s medical system. Before the pandemic, Nepal’s healthcare system was already struggling with shortages of personnel and equipment. The country’s hospital bed capacity is limited, and most medical institutions outside of large cities do not have the vital polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test equipment for timely diagnosis of COVID-19.

Epidemiologist Dr. Basudev Pandey called on politicians to abandon their differences and unite to defeat the virus.

“The political crisis has diverted the attention and energy of all politicians elsewhere, and our focus should be on the pandemic. We are not better prepared and timely arrange oxygen, ventilators, medicines and other supplies,” he Tell Al Jazeera.

“On the contrary, our leaders are busy holding protests or gatherings and attending religious gatherings. We see more political meetings than meetings held to formulate pandemic strategies.”

At the same time, Alok Lamsal, a lecturer at the Ratna Rajya campus in Kathmandu, questioned the feasibility of holding elections while the pandemic continues.

He told Al Jazeera: “This kind of political drama is simply unacceptable because people are facing extreme difficulties.” “Our full energy should continue to contain the coronavirus pandemic.”