Nepal’s ruling party chief has called for closer economic and strategic cooperation with India, on the first high-level visit since deadly 2025 anti-corruption youth protests toppled the previous government.
But this trip to a key ally was not by Nepal’s new prime minister – 36-year-old rapper-turned- politician Balendra Shah.
Shah has shunned meetings with several foreign envoys to Nepal and, according to his aides, has said he will not travel abroad for his first year in power to focus on the many domestic challenges, not least the ailing economy.
The first visit to key ally India was instead made by Rabi Lamichhane, a former deputy prime minister and interior minister, who is president of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) that won a landslide victory in March parliamentary elections, led by Shah.
Former television host Lamichhane retains a pivotal role in power and the lawmaker is expected to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, RSP spokesman Manish Jha said.
Nepal, a landlocked Himalayan nation of 30 million people, must ensure a delicate diplomatic balance between its two giant neighbours, India and China.
India has long considered Hindu-majority Nepal as a traditional ally, with open borders along the plains.
Kathmandu’s largest trading partner is India, accounting for 63% of imports, or US$8.6bil (RM34bil), followed by China at 13%, or US$1.8bil (RM7.1bil), according to World Bank figures.
“A stable and prosperous Nepal is a natural guardrail along India’s northern border, whereas a politically-fractured Nepal makes India nervous about instability in the neighbourhood,” Lamichhane wrote in Hindustan Times.
“Nepal’s economic development is, therefore, a strategic necessity for India.”
Shah has spoken little since coming to power and issued his victory message in a rap song, where he promised to “run like a leopard” to ensure his nation’s success. — AFP
