Former Guerrilla Chief 'Prachanda' Gets Third Term As Nepalese PM. Read All About Him

Prachanda has been appointed Prime Minister of Nepal in accordance with Article 76, Clause 2 of the Constitution.

Nepal's newly-appointed Prime Minister and Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as Prachanda.

Source : File Photo/AFP

New Delhi: CPN-Maoist Centre chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda" was appointed Nepal's new Prime Minister by President Bidya Devi Bhandari on Sunday. According to a statement released by the President's Office, Prachanda has been appointed Prime Minister of Nepal in accordance with Article 76, Clause 2 of the Constitution. For the third time, Prachanda has been appointed Nepal's Prime Minister.

In accordance with Article 76, clause 2, of the Constitution, the President had invited any member of the House of Representatives who could win a majority with support from two or more parties to apply for the position of Prime Minister.

Prachanda, 68, had submitted the claim before the President's Sunday deadline of 5 p.m.

Know About Prachanda And His Relationship With India:

- Prachanda, who has often flip-flopped on relations with India, was born on December 11, 1954, in the Kaski district near Pokhara. He lived underground for almost 13 years. When the CPN-Maoist embraced peaceful politics, which brought an end to a decade-long armed insurgency, he entered mainstream politics.

- Prachanda has been associated with India for a long time. During Nepal's civil war from 1996 to 2006, he spent a lot of time there. Prachanda and many other Maoist leaders had a safe haven in India at the time, and they never attempted to provoke Indian authorities fighting a domestic Maoist insurgency.

- Prachanda once sent a letter to the then BJP government, looking for India's generosity and moral help for the Maoist development in Nepal and communicating a longing for sincere relations with New Delhi.

- India engaged with Nepal's Maoists and Prachanda during the rise of the domestic Maoist insurgency in the hope that doing so would encourage Indian Maoists to join peaceful politics. In New Delhi, Prachanda and the Seven Party Alliance of the past signed a 12-point agreement that many believe laid the groundwork for Nepal's transition from monarchy to federalism.

- Nepal made the decision to hold elections for a Constituent Assembly in accordance with the 12-point deal after signing the Comprehensive Peace Accord in 2007. Maoists arose as the biggest party in these surveys and Prachanda momentarily filled in as head of the state during 2008-09. At that point, Prachanda had extremely friendly relations with Indian leaders and ambassadors.

Prachanda's Attempt To Connect With Chinese

Prachanda's public statements about India's relations have frequently been inconsistent. After the devastating earthquakes of 2015, Prachanda attempted to connect with the Chinese, who reportedly demanded a grand left alliance and assisted in bringing Prachanda and another veteran communist leader, KP Sharma Oli, together. Parties from the Madhes region blocked important trade routes with India in protest of the newly enacted constitution. Prachanda famously stated in Kathmandu at that time, "Nepal does not want to be India's yes man." Additionally, he criticized India for "imposing" the Nepali blockade.

Nepali Congress is the biggest party with 89 seats in the Place of Delegates while CPN-UML and CPN-MC have 78 and 32 seats, separately.

The 138 seats needed to form a government in the 275-member House of Representatives are not held by any party.

CPN (Unified Socialist) holds 10 seats in the House, while Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP) holds 4 seats, Rastriya Janamorcha holds 1 seat, and Nepal Workers and Peasants Party holds 1 seat.

In the Lower House, there are five independent members.

According to the President's Office, the newly appointed Prime Minister will be sworn in at 4 p.m. on Monday.