Street protests are back in Nepal. Thee protesters, however, belong to parties who are in government. The 8-month old coalition government is in the grip of a crisis.
That's because on Sunday, Nepal Prime Minister Prachanda unilaterally sacked the army chief General Katawal. Within hours, the general went to meet his top commanders to consult them. And then declared that he won't go.
The prime minister appears to be cornered.
As the head of a coalition government, few of his partners support his decision.
Crucially, the president, who's from the Nepali Congress, and who has to accept the decision, has asked Prachanda to seek a consensus.
The trouble, brewing for long, has its genesis in the army refusing to integrate former Maoist fighters into his force, fearing their political affiliations. Currently, 19,000 former guerillas are under UN supervision in cantonments.
The current crisis also erupted after the chief refused the Maoist-led government's orders to stop recruiting and re-instated generals dismissed by the defence ministry. The supreme court is due to decide on that matter.
What happens next is unclear. Because the country has an interim constitution. The matter could be heard in the supreme court.
But behind the scenes, New Delhi and Washington are said to be advising the rebel-turned-prime minsiter to resort to consensus not confrontation.
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