EVENTS

Nepal has once again entered into uncertain times of reforms and elections with the Gen Z youth-led movement bringing yet another political change in Nepal. The interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki faces an ambitious challenge to hold fresh elections in six months. She is also faced with a significant challenge in steering Nepal’s foreign policy. Landlocked between India and China, Nepal has shared traditional proximity with India, but since the advent of democracy in 2008, Left political parties have advocated for a deeper engagement with China. However, with no traditional political parties, including the Left, present in the interim setup, how would China seek a strengthened partnership with Nepal, and will the Gen Z youth be more receptive, considering shifting ties between India and Nepal in the last two decades. This Wednesday seminar presentation would decode the challenges and opportunities that the current political apparatus may present to Beijing.

Speaker

Rishi Gupta is the Assistant Director at the Asia Society Policy Institute in New Delhi and a Visiting Fellow at the Asian Institute of Diplomacy and International Affairs in Kathmandu, Nepal. He has previously worked with the Vivekananda International Foundation, the Centre for Air Power Studies, and Pondicherry University. Dr. Gupta earned his PhD in International Studies from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He was a Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Fellow in 2024 at National Chengchi University, Taiwan, and an Exchange Fellow at Sichuan University in Chengdu, China, in 2017. A regular columnist for The Print, Hindustan Times, and Dainik Jagran, his commentaries also appear in several leading national and international outlets. His research focuses on Indo-Pacific security and South Asian geopolitics, particularly the Himalayas.

Chair

Mahendra P Lama is an Adjunct Fellow, at the Institute of Chinese Studies , New Delhi. He is a development economist and has been a senior Professor in the School of International Studies in Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. He is presently Emeritus Chief Economic Adviser in the rank of a Cabinet Minister in the Government of Sikkim. He was the Founding Vice Chancellor of the Central University of Sikkim and became the youngest VC of a national University in India. He served as a Member, National Security Advisory Board, Government of India and also as Pro-Vice Chancellor of Indira Gandhi National Open University, New Delhi. He was India’s representative in the Steering Committee of the coveted South Asian Forum at the 16th SAARC Summit in Thimphu in 2010 and Independent Expert Group set up by the 10th SAARC Summit in Colombo in 1998. Till recently he was India’s nominee in the Eminent Persons Group set up by the Prime Ministers of India and Nepal. His recent work includes Strengthening Trade and Transport Connectivity in Eastern South Asia, Development Paper 25-20, UN-ESCAP (2025).

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