New Prime Minister Is Named in Nepal After Government Collapses

Nepal’s president on Sunday appointed a new prime minister, the latest in a revolving door of leaders that has left the country of 30 million in a continuous state of political uncertainty.

The new prime minister, K.P. Sharma Oli, held the post three times in the past and succeeds Pushpa Kamal Dahal, a former rebel against the Nepalese monarchy who lost a confidence vote on Friday.

Mr. Dahal lost control of the government when his coalition partners, including Mr. Oli’s party, turned on him and the fractious alliance collapsed. Mr. Dahal, who had been in power since late 2022, was seen as easier than Mr. Oli for India to manipulate and as frequently changing coalition partners for his personal benefit.

Mr. Oli, who leads Nepal’s largest communist party, forged a deal with the Nepali Congress, the largest party in Parliament, to form a new government with him at the helm. Under the power-sharing deal, the Nepali Congress and Mr. Oli’s party — the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) — have agreed to lead the government on a rotating basis until late 2027, when this session of Parliament concludes.

The deal makers said the new coalition would ensure stability by amending some electoral provisions, including trimming the number of seats in Parliament and merging some local governments established when Nepal’s first Constitution was instituted nine years ago.

Mr. Oli is taking charge of the government for the fourth time. First elected as prime minister in 2015, he firmly stood against a crippling economic blockade that India, Nepal’s southern neighbor, imposed that year over provisions it opposed in the new Constitution.