Nepal to witness a new political front to challenge Oli government: Baburam Bhattarai
Nepal's former Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai will launch a new political front to address growing disenchantment about the current government led by Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli. In an exclusive interview with The Hindu on Monday (April 28, 2025), Mr Bhattarai ruled out weakening of the democratic process in Nepal and said 'there is no chance of the return of monarchy in Nepal' and that the unhappiness on the ground is against Mr Oli's government and not against the post-monarchy democracy.
'Nepal is caught in the cycle of three leaders – Sher Bahadur Deuba, K.P. Sharma Oli and Prachanda. The youth are disenchanted as economic development has been too slow. People are looking for a change and that is why we are launching this front and have tentatively named it as Progressive Democratic Front or Progressive Socialist Front,' said Mr Bhattarai saying that new constituents are coming into the front as Nepal plans for the next election in 2027. Mr Bhattarai currently leads the Naya Shakti Party which is a democratic socialist political party in Nepal.
Mr Bhattarai said the pro-monarchy protest that recently took place in Kathmandu did not acquire sufficient political mass as the people are not unhappy with the democratic process, adding 'People are unhappy with the current government of K.P. Sharma Oli and Sher Bahadur Deuba. They are not upset with the democratic system. Therefore there is no chance of the return of monarchy.'
Mr Bhattarai is visiting India as Nepal marks 20th anniversary of Jana Andolan II. Two decades ago in February 2005, King Gyanendra suspended the existing constitution and deposed the government of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba which led to a public upsurge paving the way for the overthrow of monarchy in 2006 and the transfer of power to a democratically elected government in 2008 under Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.
Nepal subsequently adopted a new constitution in September 2015 pledging to create a more inclusive democratic system that would do away with regional disparities and systemic bias. However, the new constitution has also been accused of sustaining old social and political structures and the governments over the previous decade could not carry out the amendments that were demanded by the tribes and people from the Terai belt.
He also surmised that despite growing unhappiness against the Oli government, there is no likelihood of an immediate overthrow of the current government as 'no party in the parliament has a majority' arguing that 'change may happen even now but that will not make any qualitative change as all the three major leaders [Oli and Deuba in the government and Prachanda in the opposition] have been discredited and that is why we are forming an alternative front.'
Mr Bhattarai however remarked on Monday that much of Nepal's current political problem is rooted in the fact that the Maoists could not implement their full charter of change and said, 'Nepal's revolution was incomplete and the current situation and the protests are part of that pain that we have to undergo before more changes takes place in the country.'
'Oli and Prachanda are the same. Prachanda who was the Maoist leader has been co-opted in the old system. That is why people like us are trying to build a new front,' said Mr Bhattarai.
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