Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is all set to visit China this week to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit, marking an important step in Nepal’s high-level diplomatic engagement with its two powerful neighbors—India and China.
This visit comes at a delicate juncture. Concerns in Kathmandu are growing over a renewed India-China agreement on trade through the disputed Lipulekh Pass. Against this backdrop, the SCO summit provides Oli not just a platform to engage with regional powers but also an opportunity to assert Nepal’s interests amid rising geopolitical complexities. Alongside attending the summit’s side events, Oli is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which will be his second and third meetings with them respectively since assuming office for the third time in July 2024.
Oli’s foreign outreach has been consistent. In December last year, he visited China to finalize a framework agreement on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), one of Beijing’s top priorities in its engagement with Nepal. Similarly, his talks with Modi on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and the recent BIMSTEC meeting in Thailand highlight the frequency of high-level interactions. Yet, this week’s meetings are under particular scrutiny, as concerns over Lipulekh have resurfaced. On Aug 19, India and China agreed to resume trade through the territory that Nepal claims as its own.
While Beijing has maintained a largely reserved stance, with Foreign Minister Wang Yi merely assuring that the India-China deal was not “targeted at any third country”, Nepal has been more vocal. Government spokesperson Prithvi Subba Gurung confirmed that Kathmandu will raise the issue directly with both Xi and Modi. Meanwhile, Chinese think tanks argue that the dispute should be settled bilaterally between Nepal and India.
The timing of this trip also underscores a shift in Oli’s priorities—from domestic politics to foreign affairs. After China, he is expected to travel to India next month and later attend the United Nations General Assembly in New York in mid-September. Adding to this momentum, Vietnam’s Vice-president visited Nepal this week, exploring new avenues of cooperation in trade, education, and tourism, a sign that Nepal is quietly broadening its international engagements beyond its immediate neighborhood.
Domestically, Oli continues to stand on firm political ground. His main coalition partner, the Nepali Congress (NC), has remained supportive, allowing him to sideline opposition voices such as the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP). NC General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa, however, has urged Oli to refrain from repeatedly claiming he will eventually hand over power to NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba—a gesture seen by many as unnecessary flattery.
Within his own party, Oli maintains an even tighter grip. The CPN-UML is preparing for a statute convention that could abolish both the 70-year age limit and the two-term leadership cap, moves widely viewed as paving the way for Oli’s indefinite leadership. At the same time, former President Bidya Devi Bhandari has re-emerged, opening a new office and holding political meetings. While Oli has downplayed her return to active politics, senior UML leaders like Ishwar Pokhrel appear supportive, whereas others such as Surendra Pandey and Yubaraj Gyawali remain cautious.
Interestingly, the Lipulekh controversy—once a dominant political issue—has lost much of its noise. Beyond the CPN (Maoist Center), RSP, and a few fringe left parties, most mainstream actors including NC and UML have chosen silence. This restraint is a stark contrast to earlier years when nationalist rhetoric dominated political discourse. Oli too has avoided inflammatory remarks, perhaps to preserve diplomatic decorum ahead of his meetings in China and India.
At the same time, the Maoist Center is preparing a nationwide campaign to strengthen its base ahead of local and national elections, though Chairperson Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s attempts to topple the government appear ineffective. His tensions with senior leader Janardhan Sharma also persist.
Meanwhile, developments within Parliament continue. Ishwari Neupane of the NC has been elected chair of the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee, following the resignation of Ram Hari Khatiwada over his alleged involvement in document tampering related to cooling-off period provision in the Federal Civil Service Bill.
Outside Parliament, public discontent remains visible. Teachers have returned to the streets demanding better job security, pensions, and reforms in the education bill. The passage of the bill has been delayed due to disputes between NC and UML.
Adding to these domestic challenges, sugarcane farmers have reignited their agitation over delayed subsidies and unpaid dues from mills. Beginning Aug 24, farmers from the Tarai staged a sit-in at Maitighar Mandala in Kathmandu, demanding full payment of a long-promised Rs 70 per quintal subsidy—half of which was recently slashed to Rs 35 due to budget shortages. They are also pushing for fairer valuation, removal of VAT, and inclusion in price-setting decisions.
Beyond politics and protests, policy issues continue to surface. After last year’s rhino census was postponed due to lack of funds, Nepal will this year conduct both rhino and tiger counts with support from the Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation. On the agricultural front, paddy planting remains incomplete even as August draws to a close. Of the 1,376,466 hectares suitable for cultivation, 1,306,293 hectares (about 94 percent) have been planted, leaving 70,176 hectares still fallow.
Public health concerns are also mounting. The National Public Health Laboratory has confirmed cholera cases in Birgunj, with eight of ten tested samples returning positive. The Birgunj Metropolitan Health Division reported that 171 patients suffering from cholera and diarrhea have been treated and discharged, though results from two pending samples are awaited.
Finally, in a culturally significant ruling, the Supreme Court has declared that naked Hindu ascetics, known as Naga sadhus, are not obliged to wear clothes when visiting temples. The court affirmed that their centuries-old tradition of nudity is not obscenity, a decision warmly welcomed by the ash-smeared, dreadlocked devotees of Lord Shiva.
