KP Oli government has little to show for the 50 days of its existence. The negotiations with Madheshi parties, the only democratic way out of the current impasse, have been stuck; not a single meeting has taken place in the past one week. Now it appears his government is also dragging its feet in its negotiations with China for fuel import. Oli has blamed India for the economic blockade and committed to importing more from China. But appearance can deceive. It now appears that the prime minister—who was until recently known as among New Delhi's closest confidantes in Nepal—does not want to burn the bridge with India this early in his premiership. Nor has the new prime minister, for that matter, been able to punish government officials implicated in black-marketing of fuel and cooking gas. The Reconstruction Authority also has been steeped in controversy even before it gets full shape. In its absence, up to 200,000 people have been forced to live in makeshift camps that do not provide any protection against the encroaching winter.In fact, as we have said in this space before, it's hard to think of a single notable achievement of Oli government. We understand that the challenges before him are big. Any Nepali prime minister would have a tough time handling an overbearing India, whose help is indispensible for the country but which seems committed to keep bullying its smaller neighbor into submission. The protesting Madheshi parties, meanwhile, have been adamant about their bottom-line of two Madhesh-only provinces. These parties have found it convenient to point to the loudmouthed Oli as the main reason for lack of progress in talks. And the Chinese have not been easy to woo as Nepal searches for a new partner to buy oil from. So, undoubtedly, the pressure on Oli is immense. But he was surely aware of the enormous task at hand when he took over from Sushil Koirala. We had backed Oli as new prime minister because we didn't want to see a rupture in the NC-UML-Maoist alliance that was responsible for the new constitution. It was only right that Congress kept its side of the bargain after UML had, as committed, waited for new constitution before staking a claim on government leadership.
The decisive Oli, we felt, would also help move things forward as compared to the forever-dithering Sushil Koirala. But nothing of the sort has happened. Indecision and inaction, the hallmarks of the previous Koirala government, continue to bedevil Oli government as well. But at least Koirala will be remembered as someone who successfully ushered in the new constitution, against considerable odds. It was upon Oli as new government head to ensure its timely implementation. Again, he knew that this was possible only if he was able to take the Madheshi parties into confidence. So it's disingenuous of him to claim that he didn't anticipate this situation. Yes, the Indian blockade has made his life hard. But Oli cannot run away from his primary responsibility to look after the wellbeing of his people and to ease their suffering by pointing an accusing finger at India.
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