Nepal: Prachanda govt in crisis after coalition partner pulls support

The government of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” received a blow on Monday after one of its coalition partners — the Rastriya Prajatantra Party — announced it was withdrawing support, citing the impeachment motion registered in Parliament against Nepal’s Chief Justice Sushila Karki.

The motion to impeach Karki was registered on Sunday after a dispute arose over the appointment of the Nepal police chief, with allegations that the judge tampered with the performance evaluation of candidates for the post. “The decision to impeach Karki... is an attack against the judiciary, so the party does not support such a move,” the RPP said in a statement.

The motion to impeach Karki, moved by two of the seven ruling parties - the Nepali Congress and the CPN-Maoist Center - has led to widespread uproar in the Himalayan nation, and the RPP’s decision is just the latest show of defiance by a member of the ruling coalition.

On Sunday, home minister Bimalendra Nidhi, who heads the Nepali Congress, had tendered his resignation, expressing his reservation over the decision.

The government is in danger of being reduced to a minority if another partner, the Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum, decides to pull its support. The party‘s central committee will meet on Tuesday to take a final call, said one leader.

There was no immediate reaction from Prachanda on the fate of coalition.

The political upheaval comes just a fortnight before the first phase of elections to local government bodies — the country votes on May 14 and June 14.

Germany Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived in Saudi Arabia on Monday without a headscarf, pressing King Salman and his successors on women’s rights, the war in Yemen and other sensitive issues.

After her meetings in the Red Sea city of Jiddah, she told German journalists travelling with her that she raised human rights concerns with Saudi leaders, including the rights of women.

She said Saudi Arabia’s war in Yemen also was discussed. For more than two years, the kingdom has been bombing Yemeni rebels aligned with Saudi Arabia’s regional Shia rival, Iran.

“We don’t believe there can be a military solution to the conflict,” Merkel said. Saudi Arabia and Iran also back opposite sides of the conflict in Syria, and Germany was one of six international powers that negotiated the nuclear deal with Iran to which Saudi Arabia objected.

Saudi officials did not comment on the meetings.

Merkel also held talks with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, who oversees security forces and counterterrorism, and Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who has a vast portfolio overseeing defence and the economy. During the meetings, Merkel said, she specifically discussed the kingdom’s death penalty —Saudi Arabia has one of the world’s highest execution rates.