<figure><img width="2250" height="3149" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114091156/637203509c7e80680e0b2800jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Illustration: SWORUP NHASIJU</figcaption></figure>On 26 January, Nepal will elect 20 members to the National Assembly to replace those  retiring from the Upper House following the end of their four-year terms, marking the beginning of the second series of elections under the federal system. Leaders of the governing five-party coalition have already divided up the 19 electable seats amongst themselves, and appointed their nominees – making it certain they will win. The <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/tis-the-season-of-conventions-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">general conventions </a>of three of Nepal’s biggest and most influential parties in the last months, which were mini elections unto themselves, marked the beginning of campaigning for <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-eyes-on-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">local and federal elections</a> in the coming year. All major parties including the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepali-congress-party-time/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepali Congress</a> (MC), <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/post-convention-uml-eyes-set-on-elections/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">UML</a> and the Maoist Centre (MC) retained their gerontocracies.Preparations are now underway for local elections, which the Election Commission has recommended should be held on 27 April across the country. Nepal conducted its first legislative assembly elections as a multiparty system in 1959. Since then, there have been 10 elections for the National Legislature, with the 2017 general elections being the first of its kind after the country ushered in federalism. The year also marked the first time sub-national elections were held in 20 years.There were 14.2 million ballots cast during local elections in May 2017. However, the number jumped to 15.4 million in provincial and parliamentary elections in November the same year. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/all-eyes-on-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">All eyes on 2023</a>, Mukesh PokharelIn March 2021, the Election Commission stopped voter registration and published an updated list of 16.2 million voters after former Prime Minister <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/oli-sweeps-uml-party-polls/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">K P Oli</a> dissolved Parliament and announced early elections. The registration process resumed after the Supreme Court reinstated the house in July.And right after the Election Commission announced the National Assembly polls in November, it also announced the beginning of a month-long special voter registration program during which an additional 600,000 Nepalis registered.  As elections approach, Nepal’s political discourse is already dominated by <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/volatile-mix-of-politics-and-religion/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">parties stoking nationalistic and religious fervour</a>.  This has made for surprising political partnerships, with the Hindu-right and leadership from self-proclaimed ‘alternative’ parties uniting in their rejection of federalism, secularism and even republicanism.And if their <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/unconventional-party-conventions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">general conventions </a> were any indication, the parties will use this rhetoric to vilify opponents and gain voters at the expense of issues most pertinent to the people, such as education, migration, healthcare, the economy and the pandemic. <img width="960" height="640" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221114091156/637203539c7e80680e0b2801jpeg.jpg" alt="">In an ideal democracy, elections force public officials to be accountable. Candidates are elected based on promise of performance. But in Nepal, the polling system itself lacks transparency -- right from election funding. But electoral reform measures like re-demarcation of constituencies based on population, polling systems and voting rights of diaspora Nepalis who cannot cast votes in person, remain neglected.There has been much back and forth about the demarcation of election constituencies. While Article 286 (5) of Nepal’s Constitution states that the delineation should be done on the basis of population and geography, Madhes-based activists have pressed for constituencies to be divided on the basis of the population only.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/battle-lines-drawn-for-nepal-elections/">Battle lines drawn for Nepal elections</a>, EditorialThe government formed a five-member Constituency Delimitation Commission to look into possible rearrangement of constituencies for the federal and provincial elections in July 2017. The commission demarcated constituencies by giving 90% weightage to population size and 10% to geography.Govind Subedi, a professor of population studies at Tribhuvan University, has argued that recent practices have gone in the ‘wrong direction’. He writes in his book Political Demography of Nepal: 'The uneven distribution of representatives … is likely to increase if we adopt a population-size only-method [of delineation] … it can have a far-reaching implication in the geo-polity of Nepal.'Subedi, who was an adviser to the Commission, continues: ‘It is more likely that the sparsely populated districts in provinces which lie in the western mountains and the far western region will feel regional imbalances in sharing of political power in the national polity, which in turn may lead to provincial conflicts in the years to come.’Furthermore, Nepal’s election laws are lax enough that the wealthiest in the country who previously bankrolled parties in exchange for personal, professional and policy favours have<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/purchasing-power/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> entered politics themselves</a>. The number of businessmen and contractors elected into leadership in 2017 proves that money, not political competency, decides who is ultimately elected to lead. Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/is-democracy-too-expensive-for-nepal/">Is democracy too expensive for Nepal?</a>, Laxmi BasnetIndeed, the First Past the Post (FPTP) system has become a hotbed for corruption by businessmen, thus undermining democracy, say election experts. Prominent leaders from across the political aisle, particularly women elected into office like Minister for Women, Children and Senior Citizens Uma Regmi, have spoken in support of an overhaul of Nepal’s current election system into a fully proportional electoral system after having experienced firsthand how the current system <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-business-of-politics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">benefits the rich, powerful and the establishment</a>, while they are burdened with election debt long after they have left office.Former Acting Chief Commissioner of the Election Commission Dolakh Bahadur Gurung says that the reform should be such that MPs are not allowed to become ministers, and term limits must be set so that the same people do not hold on to their seats until they are 90 years old. ‘Our Constitution has been amended a fair number of times,’ wrote Gurung in October, ‘it is not impossible to reform our electoral system.’Meanwhile, the debate about mailed ballots and absentee voting has gained much traction among the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/the-year-of-migrant-workers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepali diaspora</a> in recent years. An estimated 4 million Nepalis work, study and live in India, the Gulf, Malaysia, Japan, Korea, Europe and North America.The Supreme Court issued a directive to facilitate voting for Nepali diaspora across the world in March 2018. However, successive governments have shown no interest in ensuring voting rights for millions of eligible voters living overseas.And even as the government has begun to <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/its-in-the-mail/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">expand the reach of its archaic postal service</a> by delivering items like passports to people’s homes, it has not considered postal voting to keep the service relevant. The political establishment seems to fear that Nepalis in the Gulf and Malaysia are fed up with the government back home, and allowing them to vote by mail will be predominantly anti-incumbent.  The Sweden-based International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) says 151 of 216 countries around the world allow voters living abroad to cast ballots in some capacity. According to the Election Integrity Project, 40 countries used postal ballots in their most recent national election before the Covid outbreak.Nilkantha Uprety, the former Chief Election Commissioner, believes there are two options to eliminate election irregularities. Firstly, there must be an improvement from within parties and candidates such that undemocratic practices are turned into fair competition during elections.Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/the-business-of-politics-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The business of politics in Nepal</a>, Shekhar Kharel‘But since it is not easy to achieve that, the second option is to radically change our current electoral system, and it would be unwise to delay in choosing which of the two options is more convenient and effective,’ he warned in a<a href="https://www.himalkhabar.com/news/127010" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> recent op-ed</a> in Himal magazine.Uprety also noted that in the end, the electoral system does not matter as much as the people involved in the elections.‘Elections can be free and fair regardless of the electoral system if political parties are democratic, candidates are committed, and there is a guarantee of good governance,’ he wrote. ‘Ultimately, elections can only be successful if the majority of voters make informed choices about the parties and candidates instead of only being interested in when and where to show up to vote.’ Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-rudderless-political-leadership/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Nepal’s rudderless political leadership</a>, Santa Gaha Magar

Shristi Karki

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Clean up elections to clean up politics

<figure><img width="1040" height="550" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161148/636d1e039c7e80680e0af3e8jpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption></figcaption></figure>If it was clear that the UML convention last month was actually the party’s first election rally, it is even more evident during this week’s Nepali Congress (NC) jamboree in Kathmandu.In his opening remarks to the NC’s 14th general convention, party leader and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba had urged delegates to bury differences and focus on the 2023 elections. His predecessor K P Oli had said the same thing two weeks ago in Chitwan, directing UML cadre to mobilise for a majority in local and federal polls.At its own convention last week, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) positioned itself by pushing an anti-secular, monarchist electoral platform, and overhauled its leadership by electing Rajendra Lingden.Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s CPN (Maoist Center), the third-largest party in Parliament and NC’s coalition partner, is set to hold its own national conference next month with full focus on elections.  All four parties are using publicity surrounding their conventions to jump-start their party machinery for 2023. It is as if they have suddenly woken up from slumber, and party infighting that had sapped morale.For the past three years, the UML and Maoist Centre were  too preoccupied with their internal power struggles to pay attention to what voters might think. The NC was not even playing opposition politics. And the Covid crisis gave everyone the excuse to do nothing. That is why the conventions have been a way to energise the parties, galvanise voters, make up for lost time so parties can throw campaigning into high gear during 2022.“The conventions were mini elections,” admits the UML’s Krishna Pokhrel. “They were rehearsals for the real thing, and allowed the parties to streamline themselves for the election.” On Thursday, Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma were elected general secretaries of Nepali Congress. This is proof that younger leaders at climbing up the party ladder. Neither are from Deuba’s camp in the party elections.However, except for the RPP, the three main parties have retained their tried, tested and failed leadership. Five-time prime minister Deuba was re-elected party chair, as was Oli and most certainly Pushpa Kamal Dahal will also head the Maoist Centre.“The conventions were an opportunity for the parties to rebrand themselves, but they have not seized it,” says political analyst Puranjan Acharya. Indeed, the country’s sinking economy, the Covid crisis and the urgent need for socio-economic reform were not even mentioned in the party conclaves which were obsessed with leadership contests and electoral alliances. Deuba’s NC presides over the coalition government made up of Dahal’s MC, Madhav Kumar Nepal’s newly-minted Unified Socialists, Upendra Yadav’s Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP), and the Rastriya Janamorcha. Dahal and Nepal need the NC’s grassroots base, and have warned Deuba not to break the coalition, which is on thin ice  mainly due to differences over the MCC which Parliament is due to ratify. While Deuba’s NC supports the $500 million American infrastructure project, Dahal and Nepal are opposed. The UML’s Oli strongly backed the MCC while he was in power, but now sees it as a useful tool to chip away at the governing coalition.“The Nepali Congress has no plans to form an alliance with anyone in 2023,” says the party’s Gagan Thapa, “we are confident that we are going to sweep the polls with a majority by ourselves.”Indeed, the NC has benefited from left disunity and wants to deploy its new young supporters to rally voters in 2023.Meanwhile, the main priority in polls for Dahal and Nepal is to weaken the UML and emerge as the second party with an electoral alliance if possible — proving correct the theory that Communists everywhere see the parties immediately to their left as more of a threat than those on the right.

All eyes on 2023

<figure><img width="2481" height="3464" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161148/636d1d399c7e80680e0af39fjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption>Illustration: SWORUP NHASIJU</figcaption></figure>Nepal’s richest who used to bankroll parties from the sidelines in exchange for personal, professional and policy favours, have decided it makes more sense to <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/bulldozing-democracy-in-nepal,4184" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">enter politics themselves</a>.
Money, not political competency, has therefore become a deciding factor in who is ultimately elected into leadership. But because politics and ill-gotten wealth feed each other, governance suffers.
Nepal’s political parties, meanwhile, have to fudge <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/is-democracy-too-expensive-for-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">poll spending</a> because of expense limitations set by the Election Commission.
The Nepali Congress (NC) listed only Rs48.7 million in election expenses, the UML Rs20.9, while the Maoist Center just Rs8.3 million in 2017. The NC also listed Rs20.9 million in donations, while the UML said it got only Rs40.6 million from businesses.
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-business-of-politics-undermines-nepals-democracy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The business of politics underminds Nepal's democracy</a>, Ramesh Kumar
In reality, a study by the Election Observation Committee shows that campaigning expenses were vastly underreported in 2017. It estimates that parties spent Rs51 billion in just local elections, and Rs46 billion was used to garner votes for the federal Parliament. 
“I had never seen so much cash in one place before,” said a member of the NC’s election-targeted finance management committee. “We saw businessmen come and go with suitcases full of money. It was strictly cash. They did not want to leave a paper trail.”
Political parties have also relied on membership fees to raise funds. The UML raked in Rs41.9 million through such levies in the last fiscal year. But that is nowhere near enough to cover campaigning costs. This means falling back on big business for funding.
Rajyalaxmi Golchha has publicly stated that she became a UML MP by paying the party Rs70 million. Businessman Moti Dugar of the UML was Minister of State in K P Oli’s government, while <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/what-is-delaying-nepal-cabinet-expansion/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Umesh Shrestha of the NC</a> is a state minister in the current government.
Nearly all big business houses set aside ‘facilitation fees’ to donate to parties across the political spectrum to ensure protection.
“The business community fears that a party which has not been placated may make things difficult if it comes to power,” says a prominent FNCCI member.
Read also: <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/the-business-of-politics-in-nepal/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The business of politics in Nepal</a>, Shekhar Kharel
Numerous laws like the Banking and Financial Institutions Act, the Medical Education Bill, or the Foreign Investment and Technology Transfer Act were passed by businessmen MPs in parliamentary committees.
<a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/red-rice/" target="_blank" style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-size: 15px; letter-spacing: 0.01em;" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tycoons</a> often pay political leaders under the table to get them into the legislature under the proportional representation mechanism.
Businessmen say they have no choice because they are tired of party extortion ahead of every election. Politicians use brokers to raise cash, and they are promised a pound of flesh.
The blurring of the boundaries between business and politics undermines democracy and development, says political science professor Krishna Khanal.
"I don’t blame the business community because it is entirely up to the leaders to decide whether to take their money or not. Trouble is, politicians have no integrity,” Khanal adds.

Purchasing power

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1d289c7e80680e0af399jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1086" height="631"/><figcaption>Debate over secularism and monarchy now threatens the RPP’s own unity. Leaders Kamal Thapa (left) and Rajendra Lingden (right).</figcaption></figure>The inauguration of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) ‘Unity Convention’ on 1 December in Kathmandu provided a preview of the issues that will dominate Nepal’s elections a little more than a year away.Invited were leaders of other main parties, and they went at each other with hammers and tongs about <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-party-reincarnating-hindu-monarchy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">secularism and monarchy</a>. It sounded like the hustings already, indicating the likely fault-lines in the 2023 polls.From the RPP stage, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba mumbled platitudes about “the need for like-minded parties to work together for the betterment of the country”.  Madhav Kumar Nepal of the Unified Socialists who split from the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/post-convention-uml-eyes-set-on-elections/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">UML</a>, urged the RPP not to “slide backwards” – meaning don’t bat for monarchy.But it was CP Mainali of the CPN (Marxist-Leninist) and Pushpa Kamal Dahal of the CPN (Maoist Centre) who showed that despite both being once diehard Communists, the comrades had widely divergent views on Nepal’s erstwhile monarchy.Mainali extolled King Mahendra’s nationalist credentials, adding that every political change in Nepal in the past half-century was a result of foreign (read “Indian”) interference. Mainali, who suffered serious injuries in a highway crash last year, has of late been making pro-monarchy statements.Dahal played to the gallery saying his Maoist party and the RPP may have divergent views but both were “patriots”. He then took a dig at Mainali, saying it was absurd for a republican who once decapitated class enemies to support a return to monarchy.“Maybe he should be heading the RPP,’ Dahal said, a proposal enthusiastically endorsed by former prime minister and RPP leader Lokendra Bahadur Chand.Ironically, the debate over secularism and monarchy now threatens the RPP’s own unity because of the defeat of incumbent party chair Kamal Thapa by newbie Rajendra Lingden.The campaigning itself was fairly civil, with both candidates meeting ex-king Gyanendra separately to seek his blessings. (King G, it is said, nodded sagely and told both to “go ahead”.) Lingden beat Thapa 1,817 to 1,617 on Sunday.Kamal Thapa served King Gyanendra loyally, and was home minister when security forces cracked down on pro-democracy supporters in April 2006. Obviously, he was not loyal enough to the royal.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1d2b9c7e80680e0af39ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="676" height="775"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>After the results were out, Thapa lashed out at both Gyanendra and an unverified tweet from Himani Shah dripping with satire, lamenting being punished by ‘Nirmal Nibas’ for being loyal to the monarchy.Indeed, throughout the RPP convention both Thapa and Lingden had been trying to outdo each other’s monarchist connections, the primary agenda of the party’s political document called for the restoration of monarchy and Hindu state.Besides Lingden, his supporter and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/rana-regime-restored-in-nepalganj/">Nepalganj mayor</a> Dhawal SJB Rana (a former <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=10282#.Ya3DHVVBypo">Nepali Times columnist</a>) won general-secretaryship. Supporters of Kamal Thapa did manage to keep significant senior party positions.Lingden’s elevation to RPP chief will mean the party will be even more aggressive in promoting the royal-Hindu line throughout 2022. This will also have a ripple effect on other parties, especially the UML. After all, <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/oli-sweeps-uml-party-polls/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">K P Oli </a>who openly backed Lingden’s campaign in the 2017 elections against Krishna Sitaula of the NC, thus winning him the only RPP seat in Parliament.There is even talk of a UML-RPP electoral alliance, and if that happens Oli’s not-so-subtle drift to the Hindu-right during his prime ministership will not look so surprising.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1d2d9c7e80680e0af39bjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1086" height="783"><figcaption>Dhawal SJB Rana</figcaption></figure>The NC is having its own convention next week in Kathmandu where it looks like Deuba will be re-elected party leader. But even in the NC, there is Shashank Koirala and others backing the Hindu state agenda.The ‘alternative’ Bibeksheel Sajha Party and its leader Rabindra Mishra is also pushing the anti-secularism, anti-federalism and monarchist line. He made a scathing attack on “those who garland Mao, but disown Mahendra” at a party unity gathering in Patan last week.When political parties cannot be distinguished by their socio-economic or political agenda, it is tempting for them to fall back on religion and the ‘order’ of the monarchy days. The parties have felt the public pulse, and detect disenchantment with the current federal polity, and especially against secularism which is seen to be foisted by outside forces.India’s gravitational pull on Nepal also means that the election campaigning next year could end up being a proxy battle reflecting the secularism debate in India itself. We are already beginning to see political alignments between and within Nepal’s parties reflecting this, and it will be more apparent in the coming months.

Battle lines drawn for Nepal elections

Go back to sleep, we'll wake you up when things start getting really exciting around here. Politicians are up to their ears waging party conventions, and nominating mascots.<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1c9e9c7e80680e0af36cjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1250" height="1909"/><figcaption>The UML started the ball rolling, and showed it has unparalleled finesse in the publicity department. Its choice of convention mascot is a naked two-legged one-horned rhino holding the party flag. (Since this is a family newspaper, we have put red undies on the upright rhino-soreass.)</figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1ca19c7e80680e0af36djpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1250" height="1909"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1ca49c7e80680e0af36ejpeg.jpg" alt="" width="846" height="1170"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1ca79c7e80680e0af36fjpeg.jpg" alt="" width="846" height="1170"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1caa9c7e80680e0af370jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1399" height="1711"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1cad9c7e80680e0af371jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1246" height="1524"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure><figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221110161144/636d1cb09c7e80680e0af372jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="1000" height="1430"><figcaption> </figcaption></figure>

Ass s

Animule Farm

<figure><img width="1040" height="550" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14b79c7e80680e0a998fjpeg.jpg" alt=""/><figcaption></figcaption></figure>The main opposition UML’s leader K P Oli has been sworn in again as party chair after elections on Tuesday, and he in turn has sworn in 14  central members who are all his supporters.Oli and his loyalists all got elected by a comfortable margin, or were unopposed in the <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-rudderless-political-leadership/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">lavish convention in Chitwan’s Sauraha</a> where 2,152 delegates have been in attendance for the past five days.Oli had tried to make the process of getting new party functionaries unanimous, but was challenged by a rival faction led by Bhim Rawal. In electronic balloting that started at 4AM on Tuesday, Oli got more than 95% of the votes. His loyalists Shankar Pokhrel (General Secretary), Ishwar Pokhrel, Pradeep Gyawali, Prithvi Subba Gurung and Bishnu Rimal (deputy General Secretaries) have either been voted in, or won uncontested.Oli had beaten <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/making-up-is-hard-to-do/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Madhav Kumar Nepal</a> with a slim margin in the previous party convention in 2016. Nepal split off from the UML earlier this year and set up his own party, the Unified Socialists, which is part of the ruling 5-party coalition with the Nepali Congress. Seven of the leaders elected as secretaries of the UML are also all Oli supporters, including Yogesh Bhattarai, Gokarna Bista, Chabilal Biswakarma, Parma Aryal, Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, Lekharaj Bhatta Raghubir Mahaseth. Rayamajhi and Bhatta are former Maoists. Besides those two, former Maoist leader Ram Bahadur Thapa who <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/nepals-post-breakup-politics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">defected to the UML</a> was elected vice-chair of the party, defeating Ghanshyam Bhusal. All three former Maoists were in Oli’s panel. Meanwhile, four UML leaders who were not supported by Oli all lost — they are Bhim Rawal for chair, Ghanashyam Bhusal for vice chair, and Bhim Acharya and Tanka Karki as party secretaries.  <figure><img width="1238" height="708" src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022111016118/636d14b99c7e80680e0a9990jpeg.jpg" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>Oli had been grooming the former Maoists to also show that the Maoist Centre party of Pushpa Kamal Dahal is a spent force. Even after the united Nepal Communist Party (NCP) returned to its former UML and Maoist parties after a Supreme Court order in April, the Thapa, Bhatta and Rayamajhi had stayed loyal to Oli, who rewarded them with his crucial support in Tuesday’s party election.So much so that Oli sidelined Bhim Rawal to make Bhatta the party incharge for the Far-west Province. One of the reasons for <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/political-expediency-trumps-nepal-constitution/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Madhav Nepal splitting from the UML</a> was Oli’s induction of the former Moaists into the party in place of Nepal’s supporters.If <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/unconventional-party-conventions/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">the UML general convention</a> looked like an election rally, that is also what it was. In fact, the elevation of the former Maoist to senior party positions appears to be Oli’s careful calculation for local and federal polls ion early 2023.Among the 301 Central Committee members elected on Tuesday is Ishwari Gharti Magar (pictured) who defied the Maoists during the insurgency to be a staunch UML party member in Rolpa’s Nuwagaun. She has now become the youngest member of the UML Central Committee.She started her political career while a student leader in the Arnico High School, and became a journalist for a few years before being a party cadre. Meanwhile, the Nepali Congress is getting ready for its own party convention in Kathmandu next week. <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/latest/deuba-5/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba</a> is expected to win the party chairmanship just like Oli did in the UML — despite a challenge from Ram Chandra Poudel and Bimalendra Nidhi.RThe Hindu-right Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) is also heading for a convention, and current leader Kamal Thapa is facing a challenge from Rajendra Lingden for the top party post.

Oli sweeps UML party polls

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/2022110919118/636bed404b0ad905ca02eed3jpeg.jpg" alt="" width="720" height="480"/><figcaption>Photo: @KTnepal</figcaption></figure>Loyal readers will remember royal leaders we have covered in these pages over the past two decades. The uneasy transition to constitutional monarchy post-1990, the conflict, the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/royal-massacre-Nepal-15-years-later" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">palace massacre</a> of 2001, the attempt by King Gyanendra to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14835#.X8c51S2B0b1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">repeat his father’s coup</a> in 2005, and finally the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/nepal-from-royal-to-republic,3736" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">abolition of the monarchy</a> in 2008.History keeps repeating itself in Nepal. And once again, we are coming full circle with street demonstrations in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/saffron-surge-politics,3619" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">support of a return to monarchy and a Hindu state</a>.It is significant that the rallies are happening in the run-up to the 60th anniversary of King Mahendra’s putsch against Nepal’s first democratically elected government led by Prime Minister B P Koirala on 15 December 1960.The current series of protests began in Butwal last month, and moved around the country with a rally in Kathmandu on Monday. They were organised by disparate groups, with tacit support from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP).The RPP had not, till now, openly joined the demonstrations. That would have been odd because the demonstrators had called for an end to federalism, and the RPP has one seat in the Federal Parliament. But it has now asked party members to show up for rallies planned for 4 and 5 December in Hetauda and Jhapa, which will see addresses by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/interview/Advantage,277" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">RPP leaders like Kamal Thapa</a>, Prakash C Lohani and Pashupati Shumsher Rana.There is speculation about why royalists and the Hindu-right have chosen this particular time for a show of force. Obviously, they see an opening in the political space – the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/outside-looking-in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">mired in endless infighting</a>, and the main opposition Nepali Congress is leaderless and rudderless.The RPP emerged as the fourth-largest party after the UML, NC and the Maoists in the 2013 Constituent Assembly election, and the party leaders quite rightly seem to surmise that since the other parties have had their chance in government multiple times and squandered their mandate, their time has come.RPP rallies this past month have been well-attended, even though the public is not spontaneously joining in on the flag-waving in large numbers, as the organisers claim. Even so, the crowds represent disillusionment with the past two-and-half years of NCP misrule, factionalism, corruption and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-ruling-party-feud-affecting-covid-19-response/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">poor management of the Covid-19 crisis</a>.The main demands of the demonstrators have been the restoration of the monarchy, and scrapping provisions in the 2015 Constitution that turned Nepal into a federal, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=3644#.X8c5zi2B0b0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">secular republic</a>. Past public opinion polls by this paper have shown that while there is not much mass support for a re-thronement of King Gyanendra, there is a sizeable component of the population that is for Nepal becoming a Hindu state again.In a way, the RPP is testing the waters to see if a <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/2017/03/22/southerly-wind/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hindu monarchy</a> can be a viable electoral plank for the next federal and local elections in 2022. Enthused by the unexpected numbers at rallies, the party is now openly leading a street campaign to stoke populist passions at a time when the NCP and NC are both distracted by their internal squabbles. The RPP believes it can end the current anarchy with a stable monarchy.It’s not that the RPP is not faction-ridden like the rest, it has had frequent splits and reunifications over the past 10 years. There has been tension between those who want Nepal to only become a Hindu state but are not as enthusiastic about the monarchy, and others who want both.In September, this led Sunil Thapa, son of five-time Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa, to defect from the RPP to the NC. RPP leader Kamal Thapa has himself been lukewarm towards monarchy, but now favours a ceremonial or constitutional kingship.The other overarching issue is disenchantment with democracy itself, and the argument that a visionary charismatic leader is better than the current cabal under a western-style parliamentary system. Lending force to this argument is the erosion of democratic values under <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/guest-editorial/modi-india-politics,872" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Prime Minister Modi in India</a>, as well as China’s rising economic and political clout. This coincides with the weakening of the West, which had till recently been giving powerful backing for democracy, press freedom, human rights and secularism.Whatever happens in India has a gravitational pull in Nepal, and the BJP’s Hindu-right ideology could be another factor that has emboldened the RPP. Some rally organisers in Nepal are groups that seem to be offshoots of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/After-Adityanath,3617" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hindutva elements across the border</a>. However, this convergence has its limits since at some point India’s Hindu juggernaut would collide with RPP’s ultra-nationalist platform.Even as the ruling NCP’s infighting gets more heated, however, the ruling party may be saved from a split because of the RPP’s activism. There is nothing like a common outside enemy to unite a party. Unwittingly, Kamal Thapa may be giving his old coalition colleague K P Oli some breathing space.

Nepal party reincarnating Hindu monarchy

<figure><img src="https://superdesk-pro-c.s3.amazonaws.com/sd-nepalitimes/20221109181140/636be61e9c7e80680e08778ajpeg.jpg" alt="" width="720" height="480"/><figcaption>Photo: @KTnepal</figcaption></figure>Loyal readers will remember royal leaders we have covered in these pages over the past two decades. The uneasy transition to constitutional monarchy post-1990, the conflict, the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/royal-massacre-Nepal-15-years-later" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">palace massacre</a> of 2001, the attempt by King Gyanendra to <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14835#.X8c51S2B0b1" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">repeat his father’s coup</a> in 2005, and finally the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/nepal-from-royal-to-republic,3736" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">abolition of the monarchy</a> in 2008.History keeps repeating itself in Nepal. And once again, we are coming full circle with street demonstrations in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/saffron-surge-politics,3619" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">support of a return to monarchy and a Hindu state</a>.It is significant that the rallies are happening in the run-up to the 60th anniversary of King Mahendra’s putsch against Nepal’s first democratically elected government led by Prime Minister B P Koirala on 15 December 1960.The current series of protests began in Butwal last month, and moved around the country with a rally in Kathmandu on Monday. They were organised by disparate groups, with tacit support from the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP).The RPP had not, till now, openly joined the demonstrations. That would have been odd because the demonstrators had called for an end to federalism, and the RPP has one seat in the Federal Parliament. But it has now asked party members to show up for rallies planned for 4 and 5 December in Hetauda and Jhapa, which will see addresses by <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/interview/Advantage,277" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">RPP leaders like Kamal Thapa</a>, Prakash C Lohani and Pashupati Shumsher Rana.There is speculation about why royalists and the Hindu-right have chosen this particular time for a show of force. Obviously, they see an opening in the political space – the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) is <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/editorial/outside-looking-in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">mired in endless infighting</a>, and the main opposition Nepali Congress is leaderless and rudderless.The RPP emerged as the fourth-largest party after the UML, NC and the Maoists in the 2013 Constituent Assembly election, and the party leaders quite rightly seem to surmise that since the other parties have had their chance in government multiple times and squandered their mandate, their time has come.RPP rallies this past month have been well-attended, even though the public is not spontaneously joining in on the flag-waving in large numbers, as the organisers claim. Even so, the crowds represent disillusionment with the past two-and-half years of NCP misrule, factionalism, corruption and <a href="https://www.nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-ruling-party-feud-affecting-covid-19-response/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">poor management of the Covid-19 crisis</a>.The main demands of the demonstrators have been the restoration of the monarchy, and scrapping provisions in the 2015 Constitution that turned Nepal into a federal, <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=3644#.X8c5zi2B0b0" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">secular republic</a>. Past public opinion polls by this paper have shown that while there is not much mass support for a re-thronement of King Gyanendra, there is a sizeable component of the population that is for Nepal becoming a Hindu state again.In a way, the RPP is testing the waters to see if a <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/blogs/kundadixit/2017/03/22/southerly-wind/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hindu monarchy</a> can be a viable electoral plank for the next federal and local elections in 2022. Enthused by the unexpected numbers at rallies, the party is now openly leading a street campaign to stoke populist passions at a time when the NCP and NC are both distracted by their internal squabbles. The RPP believes it can end the current anarchy with a stable monarchy.It’s not that the RPP is not faction-ridden like the rest, it has had frequent splits and reunifications over the past 10 years. There has been tension between those who want Nepal to only become a Hindu state but are not as enthusiastic about the monarchy, and others who want both.In September, this led Sunil Thapa, son of five-time Prime Minister Surya Bahadur Thapa, to defect from the RPP to the NC. RPP leader Kamal Thapa has himself been lukewarm towards monarchy, but now favours a ceremonial or constitutional kingship.The other overarching issue is disenchantment with democracy itself, and the argument that a visionary charismatic leader is better than the current cabal under a western-style parliamentary system. Lending force to this argument is the erosion of democratic values under <a href="http://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/guest-editorial/modi-india-politics,872" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Prime Minister Modi in India</a>, as well as China’s rising economic and political clout. This coincides with the weakening of the West, which had till recently been giving powerful backing for democracy, press freedom, human rights and secularism.Whatever happens in India has a gravitational pull in Nepal, and the BJP’s Hindu-right ideology could be another factor that has emboldened the RPP. Some rally organisers in Nepal are groups that seem to be offshoots of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/After-Adityanath,3617" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Hindutva elements across the border</a>. However, this convergence has its limits since at some point India’s Hindu juggernaut would collide with RPP’s ultra-nationalist platform.Even as the ruling NCP’s infighting gets more heated, however, the ruling party may be saved from a split because of the RPP’s activism. There is nothing like a common outside enemy to unite a party. Unwittingly, Kamal Thapa may be giving his old coalition colleague K P Oli some breathing space.

Fenerbahçe Beko won the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague finals in Abu Dhabi, held 23-25 May, defeating Monaco 81-70 in the final. Olympiacos, who defeated Panathinaikos 97-93, finished the series in third place. The Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the final match, Nigel Hayes-Davis from Fenerbahçe Beko, received a prize of 1,000,000 Miles&amp;Smiles from Turkish Airlines’ Chief Commercial Officer Ahmet Olmuştur. The carrier has been the title sponsor of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague, a top tier tournament, since 2010.

Turkish Basketball

Thousands of Nepali students dreaming of an American education have been forced to look elsewhere as the Trump administration’s visa restrictions make their future uncertain.
The US was long considered a top destination for higher studies, making Nepal the 10th biggest country of origin for international students in America.&nbsp;
However, that number has seen a significant decline with the total for Nepali students now at 16,482. Some 8,000 Nepali students obtained no-objection certificates to study in the US from the Ministry of Education in the past year.&nbsp;
India, Australia, Canada, South Korea, United Kingdom and Japan are the other popular destinations for Nepali students. There are no clear numbers for Nepalis going to India, but a slight decline was noted this year after the deaths of two female students.
The US State Department has issued a circular to its embassies not to issue new visas to applicants until further notice. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the directive stated that the department planned to expand the screening of applicants' social media.&nbsp;
While new applicants are barred including those applying for visitor visas, students with scheduled interviews are allowed to proceed.
“Many of our students are affected by the new restrictions, but those who had applied for student visas earlier have got interview dates,” one Kathmandu-based college counsellor told us.
Meanwhile, even foreign students with spotless records already in the US have not been spared, as visa scrutiny intensifies under the new policy. In a move that underscores the growing sense of insecurity, many US colleges advised international students to carry their passports and documents at all times, even when traveling locally.
“Me and my friends did not go home this summer because we were not sure we would be allowed back, so we just went to Niagara Falls,” said a Nepali undergrad in Ohio, who like many interviewed for this report did not want her name used for fear of repercussion.
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Nepali students have adopted a cautious stance, with many choosing not to return home during summer vacation due to fear of visa revocations as well as travel bans. Meanwhile, over 7,000 Nepalis with Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will have to come back to Nepal by 5 August or face deportation. Thirty-seven were flown back to Kathmandu on Omni Air last week.
“The US is one of the most sought-after destinations for higher education, and the ban will definitely impact bright students,” says Narottam Aryal of the King’s College in Kathmandu.
Indeed, Nepali undergraduates admitted into Ivy League colleges for the 2025 academic year have been asked to look for alternatives. The entire Fulbright Foreign Scholarships Board resigned on Wednesday citing interference from the Trump administration on the selection of this year’s cohort. Some Nepali students already on Fulbright scholarships have noted disruptions, delays and even cancellation of stipends.&nbsp;
The student visa restrictions were initially just for foreign students admitted to Harvard University, but it was later extended to all Chinese students and now to all students. Universities like Columbia which actively recruit foreign students, face sharp enrolment declines, threatening their financial stability and diversity.
An Indian female PhD candidate at Columbia University had her visa revoked by the US State Department, and said she was targeted on the basis of her social media posts on Israeli military attacks in Gaza. Social media vetting of political activism has raised concerns about privacy and freedom of expression in a country where such rights were a given.
Many students have been informed via email that their visas have been revoked for getting speeding or parking tickets, but even others with no criminal record have been affected. The fear of deportation looms large amongst international students, including those from Nepal.&nbsp;
For most Nepalis who migrate to the US for education, the journey is a high-stakes investment. They come largely from middle-class families, often rely on a patchwork of scholarships, work-study programs, loans, or even the sale of family assets to afford fees.
Most Nepali students pursue STEM subjects which offer extended Optional Practical Training (OPT) periods that help fund their education. But with the US backsliding on education and humanitarian matters, countries like the UK and Canada are becoming more attractive despite their own recent stricter controls on student visas.&nbsp;
The UK universities saw a 63% rise in Nepali students’ admissions in 2024. Japan is another popular destination with 64,816 Nepali students enrolled as of 2024.
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Already, China, Hong Kong and Malaysia are poised to benefit from the increased scrutiny of US student visas. Several Hong Kong universities are offering unconditional admission to affected students, while Malaysian institutions are targeting previously US-bound Asian students. China and India have 330,000 and 280,000 students respectively in America, but the numbers for China have seen a sharp drop in the past year.
Elsewhere, branch campuses of American institutions such as NYU in Abu Dhabi, Georgetown in Dubai and Northwestern in Doha are getting more admission applications, and universities in the Gulf region are expanding infrastructure to accommodate those who would otherwise have gone to the US.&nbsp;
Even educational institutions in Nepal are hopeful that the US visa restrictions can be an opportunity to at least keep Nepali undergrads in Nepal, and also attract foreign students from the region.&nbsp;
“Many students might choose to complete their undergraduate degree here in Nepal and then move abroad for their Master’s degree later,” says Aryal of King’s College. “There was a need for quality higher education in Nepal anyway in terms of innovation and opportunities, so this could be the time to reduce our dependence on other countries.”
Nepal’s strategic position between India and China makes it sensitive to US policy shifts. India, a key ally, is also under US scrutiny for potential student travel restrictions. Chinese universities are already offering more scholarships to Nepali talent to capitalise on the US retreat.
American universities have challenged student visa restrictions in the courts. A federal court in Boston revoked the blanket ban on Harvard, and the State Department has ordered the resumption of processing student and exchange visitor visas.&nbsp;
Some are still hoping that President Trump will backtrack on the student visa restrictions, just like he has done with many of his more drastic executive orders.
Even so, the visa see-saw and longer-term uncertainties about living in the United States and its education system means students across the world are making alternative plans.
Says Aryal: “Policies of foreign countries change according to their needs, so excessive dependence was never a good idea. We should work to create different opportunities and choices of higher education within Nepal, so students are retained.” &nbsp;

America no longer prime destination for Nepali students

That winter day in January 1664 marked an exceptional event in the reign of King Pratap Malla of Kathmandu. It was 15 Paush 784 of the Nepal Sambat and for the first time, a historical event was being immortalised on canvas for generations to come.&nbsp; The occasion was the grand Tuladaan ceremony of the King’s youngest son Chakrabartendra Malla from his wife Anantapriya, an Indian princess from Cooch Behar in present-day Assam.&nbsp; During the ritual, the prince was weighed against gold, silver, pearls, and other precious stones, which were then offered to Goddess Taleju Bhavani, the guardian deity of the Malla dynasty.&nbsp; The 170 x120cm painting captures the time of King Pratap Malla in all its splendour and is more than a personal tribute to his son: it is a significant visual historical document. It was evidently completed five years later in 1669, and could be considered a photographic record, with retrospective recreation of the event by the unknown artist. A Tuladaan ceremony is performed to purify one’s karma, quell impending bad luck, or as an act of charity and devotion. Chakrabartendra Malla was not well, and the ritual was performed in hopes of restoring his health. King Pratap Malla had arranged for each of his sons to take turns ruling Kathmandu so they got administrative experience. But Chakrabartendra died just two days after assuming power in 1670 (790 NS). This painting is considered the earliest known example in which the composition is dominated by an architectural landscape: the Taleju Temple. Given the stylistic features such as side-profile facial depictions and the rendering of human forms, it is believed that the Nepali artist was trained by a Rajput master.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250615040624_ddad3bc27a327e3f9926c8473287e4f14b53081296c295049009f327a4d97051.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250615040624_ddad3bc27a327e3f9926c8473287e4f14b53081296c295049009f327a4d97051" data-rendition-name="original" width="3248" height="4395" loading="lazy" alt="Tuladaan NT"> </figure>  During that era, there were regular exchanges of artists between Northern India and Kathmandu Valley. The painting is also a melding of Nepali, Tibetan, Mughal, and Rajput art styles of the time. Pratap Malla could have been inspired by a painting of Mughal Emperor Jahangir’s Tuladaan ceremony for his son Khurram in 1607. The Mallas and Mughals shared cordial relations, which is reflected in the cultural influences seen in the art and attire of the period.&nbsp; The clothing of the Malla ruling class, in particular, features colourful tunics, turbans, and jewelry that display strong Rajput and Mughal stylistic elements. The musicians in the upper tier are also dressed in Indian-style clothing, while the ensemble on the lower steps wear local attire, notably without turbans. Their hairstyles also differ, with the lower group wearing their hair tied in a bun at the front. This national treasure is currently in storage at the Collège de France in Paris, and has never been publicly displayed. Nepal’s art scholars like Gautam Vajracharya, Pratap Aditya Pal and Anne Vergati have written about this iconic paubha in the past, but the only detailed study is from the perspective of music history by researcher Richard Widdess who had access to high resolution copies of the original.&nbsp; Widdess from the Department of Music at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London describes the paubha as the most significant and richly detailed documentation of music in Nepali art. He identifies distinct musical ensembles on the terraces of the temple, and remarkably most of them are actively used today. One of them reflects the Mughal naqqārakhāna model — a loud outdoor ensemble typically composed of kettledrums, trumpets, and cymbals, traditionally performed from the gateway of the emperor’s palace to announce his entrances and exits. The depiction of such an ensemble in the tulādāna painting is likely the earliest known representation of a complete naqqārakhāna in Nepal — considered the forerunner of the panche baja, the traditional Nepali ensemble. On the stepped pyramid base of the temple are two groups of musicians playing local instruments: dhimey, bhushya, and dha. They are unmistakably Newar musicians, wearing short skirts and short-sleeved tops, with bare heads and legs—clearly distinguished as local performers.&nbsp; Higher still on the temple pyramid are musicians of apparently higher status, positioned close to the king, and his courtiers, possibly professional court musicians from India, well-versed in rāga and tāla. A dāphā group is also clearly depicted, identifiable by their characteristic instruments.&nbsp; Dāphā bhajan is likely the oldest surviving tradition of Newar devotional singing, and this paubha is the oldest visual record of it. Pratap Malla himself is believed to have composed songs that continue to be performed by dāphā groups throughout Kathmandu till today.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025061211064_d67636730cdc0ec778c02494817aca0b99654f2950d0fae4b95499a61faf7ef3.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025061211064_d67636730cdc0ec778c02494817aca0b99654f2950d0fae4b95499a61faf7ef3" data-rendition-name="original" width="596" height="768" loading="lazy" alt="Priceless paubha in Paris NT"> </figure>  The artist’s thorough attention to musical detail may be attributed to King Pratap Malla’s own deep interest in music. His inscriptions on this painting and elsewhere proclaim his mastery of all branches of knowledge, including music. He is also known as the author of dance dramas and poems, penning his name as Kavindra (king of poets). Some noteworthy elements of new art techniques stand out: for example, the roof of the temple is filled with realistically rendered white doves, pigeons, and crows. This is a rare feature in paubha, where animals and birds are stylised, mythological forms. This remarkably talented unknown artist has managed to also render an orthographic projection: the front and side view of Nepal’s first architectural paubha. The Taleju Temple, with its staggering multi-tiered structure and numerous steps and platforms, is masterfully translated into layers within the painting. This represents a significant artistic achievement of the time, especially considering that dimensional perspectives had not started in deity-based paubha.&nbsp; The artist has also made a meticulous effort to capture architectural details such as the toran (ornamental arch) and temple struts with impressive precision. There are flickering lamps along the steps and some people carrying what appear to be oil pots.&nbsp; It is a full moon night and the dark sky is adorned with all the gods and goddesses, who are depicted as blessing the ceremony while seated on stylised thangka clouds. There is a lot happening in this painting, with people engaged in various activities. The artist has also rendered a forest backdrop behind the temple, complete with deer, trees, and flowers. Could there have once been a royal garden behind the Taleju Temple?&nbsp; More details and clarity can only be achieved if we are able to view the original or a high-resolution scanned version of the artwork. Many countries proudly display art depicting historical events in their national museums with great reverence. France, for example, has The Coronation of Emperor Napoleon and Empress Joséphine by Jacques-Louis David (1808–1822), along with numerous paintings of the Napoleonic Wars. Many were commissioned by Napoleon himself for future generations to remember.&nbsp; For Nepal, the equivalent is the Tuladaan paubha which is a visual record capturing a historic moment involving one of Kathmandu’s greatest kings, on the very day the event took place. Sadly, we await the day when this masterpiece is displayed, shared in high resolution for detailed study, or more rightfully — repatriated to its homeland, where it truly belongs. &nbsp; Shaguni Singh Sakya is the Director of the Museum of Nepali Arts (MoNA) at Kathmandu Guest House in Thamel. <h2>Gods homeward bound</h2> The Nepal Heritage Recovery Campaign and Nepal’s Department of Archaeology are convening the first international conference on the Recovery of Cultural Heritage from 16-18 June in Patan. The conference will address urgent issues of theft, illicit trafficking, the campaign to repatriate looted cultural artifacts, and explore how the return of sacred antiquities contributes to justice, healing, and reconciliation for communities and nations affected by cultural loss. American art crime professor Erin L Thompson and Saubhagya Pradhananga of the Department of Archaeology will deliver the keynote. Meanwhile, author and Nepali Times publisher Kunda Dixit will lead a conversation on Illicit Trafficking: Public Opinion and Role of Media with Erin Thompson, Amr Al Azm, associate professor of Middle East History and Anthropology at Shawnee State University in Ohio, as well as Bradley J Gordon, a lawyer based in Phnom Penh. There will be sessions looking at repatriation perspectives from Cambodia, India, Vietnam, China and Poland, international frameworks for repatriation, emerging digital technologies in the repatriation of cultural heritage, cultural property agreements, museums as well as trends in the art market, and heritage diplomacy and the role of media.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025061211068_59cfccfa8f5d73bfe8b4c5811a7f53abc09ea04e8cb7c638933d62e5283efdf6.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2025061211068_59cfccfa8f5d73bfe8b4c5811a7f53abc09ea04e8cb7c638933d62e5283efdf6" data-rendition-name="original" width="1080" height="1350" loading="lazy" alt="Heritage recovery NT"> </figure>  <h2> </h2> Some of the other highlights include James K. Reap, a professor in the Master of Historic Preservation Program at the University of Georgia who has a session on the US response to illicit trafficking. Art historian Lea Saint-Raymond is taking on “Gods at Auction: The Market for Himalayan Artefacts”, while lecturer of criminology at the University of Glasgow Emiline Smith is delving into transformative approaches to heritage ownership and repatriation. Helena Arose of Antiquities Coalition and Melina Antoniadis of NOSTOS Strategies that specialise on the return home of cultural heritage as well as Hao Liu of International Cultural Heritage Law at the School of Law at Shandong University are some of the others attending. The Nepal Heritage Recovery Campaign was set up in 2020 to develop a coordinated movement to reclaim Nepal’s stolen gods and goddesses, with an aim to ensure that recovered items are returned to their original shrines, niches or sanctums. Ahead of the conference opening organisers have arranged for a film screening of Loot &amp; Return: 4 Documentaries at YalaMaya Kendra in Patan Dhoka between 14-15 June. Following the conference is a multimedia exhibition titled Absent Gods: Nepal’s Lost Heritage from 31 July to 4 August at Patan Museum.

Priceless paubha in Paris

While Nepal was hosting the Sagarmatha Sambaad international climate conference in Kathmandu this month, on Mt Everest it was pretty much business as usual.&nbsp; The signs of climate breakdown are all there: a river now runs through Base Camp in summer, the Khumbu Icefall is more unstable, and there are more &nbsp;frequent avalanches. When expeditions arrived in March, the mountains were bare: it had not snowed since September, but then blizzards dumped unseasonal snow in May. And despite climate worries, such is the pull of Himalayan mountaineering that the Everest Industry showed no signs of slowdown. More than 600 international climbers and their Nepali guides had made it to the summit of the world’s highest mountain. At one point there were an estimated 2,000 people in the tent city on the Khumbu Glacier. All the ropes and ladders on the Icefall came down on Thursday, marking the official end of the spring climbing season, and just in time to avoid a monsoon cyclone approaching from the Bay of Bengal. It has been an action-packed season. One factor could be that Everest fees will go up from September: each foreign climber needs to pay a $15,000 royalty, up from the present $11,000. The cost for a Nepali climber on the South Col route will also go up: from Rs75,000 to Rs150,000.&nbsp; The fee to climb Everest in autumn is $7,500 (up from $5,500), but most climbers still prefer spring. Winter permit fee (December-February) is only $3,750 per person and the mountain is now also open for monsoon (June-August) climbs, when the fee is ever lower at $2,750. The revised rule also makes it mandatory for every two climbers on an 8,000m peak to hire one Nepali mountain guide.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025053004050_67f856fe52714e4bdcf21ae7d45c6f18c82117b9d0a5f73ed1efa04c96de1046" data-rendition-name="original" width="931" height="732" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry graph 1"> </figure>  In addition, climbers also have to pay for porters and guides, equipment, Base Camp costs, Ice Fall and fixed rope team fees, so climbing Everest does not come cheap. But such is the draw of climbing the world’s highest peak that some say the increased fees will not diminish the crowds next year. The government has tried to spread expeditions out to other seasons and other 8,000ers, but with not much success. Earlier this year, Nepal unilaterally increased the number of 8,000m peaks to 14 by adding six more sub-summits to broaden the choice for climbers. Added were: Yalung Kang (8,505m), Yalung Kang West (8,077m) &nbsp;Kangchenjunga Central (8,473m), Kangchenjunga South (8,476m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m) and Lhotse Shar (8,400m).&nbsp; The announcement could go against the accepted topographic criteria that a stand alone peak has to be at least 300m higher than an adjoining prominence, and at more than 3km isolation from it. The UIAA (Union Internationale des Associations d'Alpinisme) still recognises only 14 mountains as eight-thousanders, and only eight of those are in Nepal, or on the border with China. Nepal’s revised mountaineering regulations also increased the insurance coverage of high-altitude workers to protect porters and high altitude guides who usually take more risks on the mountains. Rescue teams and clean-up campaigners to collect trash and remove bodies of dead climbers up to Camp IV of Mt Everest do not need permits.&nbsp; The Sagarmatha Pollution Control Committee is now using drones to fly down trash in 20kg sacks. Each climber is also required to bring down at least 6kg of waste and not just their own, but this rule is erratically enforced. With five fatalities on Everest and Lhotse, Spring 2025 had a historically low death toll. Another five climbers died on Annapurna, Kangchenjunga and Makalu.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="2025053004050_38681de22f0fefb6faa12b01755566d09c5064d0ff84e12ccc7b5d68ea9ba38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="665" height="740" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest industry graph 2"> </figure>  Journalist Ben Ayers who ran the Everest Live social media channel from Everest Base Camp with daily updates credited the low death rate to dramatic rescues of climbers from the ‘Death Zone’ by their Nepali guides and longline helievacs — the visuals all uploaded on YouTube.&nbsp; “Ironically, this perception of safety is bringing more and more inexperienced climbers to the mountain, and they need more rescues,” Ayers said in one of his dispatches.&nbsp; American expedition chronicler and summiteer Alan Arnette suspects there is a lot of under-reporting given that the jet stream and storms were lashing Everest even till late in the season. He told us: “I heard a lot about frostbite and rescues that were not made public. It’s become practically impossible to cover the details on Everest. All the teams report nice news, and they don’t talk about bad stuff to avoid hurting businesses.” Although trash on Nepal’s mountains makes headlines, what does not receive as much attention is the climate impact of so many expeditions. The Sagarmatha Sambaad conference sidestepped this issue, which is ironic given that the impact of climate breakdown is most evident on Himalayan peaks and their glaciers.&nbsp; <h2>Need for Speed</h2> The big stories this year have been about speed-running from their home cities to the top of Everest. Ukrainian entrepreneur Andrew Ushakov flew out of JFK on 15 May at 10:15AM Nepal time, and was on the summit 3 days, 23 hours, and 7 minutes later on 19 May at 9:22AM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="20250601080640_1c5cc6fc991307861768f07037ed9d30930fb20f35dbb57dc31c9a92a9e1a885" data-rendition-name="original" width="1440" height="1800" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry"> <figcaption>Andrew Ushakov at the summt. Photo: ELITE EXPED</figcaption> </figure>  “I could never find the time for the traditional 40-50 days of acclimatisation,” Ushakov explained matter-of-factly. His ‘Everest Sea-to-Summit’ climb was possible because he spent 400 hours in hypoxic sleep tents over the past four years in New York. However, Ushakov did use ropes already fixed, hired four Nepali guides, helicoptered to Base Camp, and used much more oxygen than an average climber. And after the climb, Ushakov was arrested at Kathmandu airport for being in possession of $20,000 of undeclared cash and spent a night in jail and fined $60,000.&nbsp; The other speedsters were Garth Miller, Alastair Cairns, Anthony Stazicker, and Kev Godlington, all former British Army commandos. They left London and summited five days later on 21 May, and flew right back. They also used hypoxic tents to simulate the thin air high on Everest.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8.jpg" data-media-id="editor_3" data-image-id="20250601080644_90c8dd5cc07b4b43f2989b1dc0c0650ab80f10ebb06680c25a6909c519957bd8" data-rendition-name="original" width="810" height="668" loading="lazy" alt="The Everest Industry "> <figcaption>All four members of the Furtenbach team at the summit. Photo: Sandro Gromen-Hayes</figcaption> </figure>  But more controversial was their use of xenon gas therapy in a German hospital to ramp up the production of oxygen-carrying haemoglobins in their blood. Xenon is banned by the World Anti-Doping Agency for being performance enhancing in sports. Expedition leader Lukas Furtenbach said this rule does not apply to mountaineering, as it is not a regulated sport like swimming. Nepal has no rules about xenon, but the Department of Tourism said it was launching an ‘investigation’ to decide on future policy since it is difficult to ban xenon, but allow oxygen. The controversy has also divided the mountaineering community, with some climbers saying they just want to maximise their chances of survival. Spending less time on the mountain could make climbing safer by reducing avalanche risk. It would also mean less trash on the mountains, but it would reduce the income of Nepal’s expedition industry. It is also unclear how much of the success was due to xenon therapy and whether the ex-special forces were already in good physical shape.&nbsp; The need for speed hides the fact that climbing in the Himalaya is dangerous business, and climbers cannot sprint to the top just by huffing xenon. But ultra-fast climbs could be charged more, and the revenue generated can be used to establish state-of-the-art rescue operations, and increase pay and insurance for guides. Two other speed chasers this season were Swiss-Ecuadorian Karl Egloff and American Tyler Andrews, both on Everest without oxygen. Andrews choppered to Base Camp to catch a weather window, but turned back from 8,500m due to high winds. Heavy snow and wind also forced Egloff to descend from 7,000m. Slow and steady climbers like Anja Blacha from Germany did make it to the summit without oxygen, while Kami Rita Sherpa broke his own record with his 31st Everest summit as he led a 26-strong Indian Army group. There were 468 permits issued for foreign climbers from 48 expeditions to Everest this spring. Nepal’s other eight-thousanders together had only 17 expeditions. Nepal has more than 1,000 peaks above 6,000m, and has opened only 476 of them for climbing.&nbsp;

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