Prachanda meets his Waterloo, China under fire
KATHMANDU: Despite a furious attempt to break an opposing alliance of four Terai parties and regain power, Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda still met his Waterloo on Tuesday, losing the prime ministerial election for a record seventh time, and dragging his mentor, China, into dispute.
While the 55-year-old's defeat was almost certain, as it had been in the earlier six rounds, in a stunning development, the Chinese embassy in Kathmandu came under fire with nearly 200 protesters demonstrating outside. Instead of "Free Tibet" protesters, Tuesday's march was led by a little known students' group -- the Free Youth Organisation – that claimed to have over 20,000 members in Hong Kong and Malaysia as well.
While a grim-faced parliament chairman Subas Nembang was telling the weary house that Prachanda had received only 252 votes and his rival, Nepali Congress parliamentary party chief Ram Chandra Poudel, 119 and so, none had reached the winning mark of 300, about 200 people shouted slogans outside the Chinese embassy in another part of the capital. "We oppose all foreign intervention in Nepal's internal affairs," said some of the banners while students called for Maoist MP Krishna Bahadur Mahara – alleged to have been caught in a bribery scam involving Chinese money -- to leave Nepal. (TheTimesofindia)
(Read more: Prachanda meets his Waterloo, China under fire - South Asia - World - The Times of India http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/south-asia/Prachanda-meets-his-Waterloo-China-under-fire/articleshow/6513202.cms#ixzz0yqYlFkY9)
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