Nepal, March 16 -- The collapse early this month of a seven-party alliance, primarily made up of the Nepali Congress and the Maoist Centre, reflects the deteriorating political culture in Nepal. It has only been 16 months since the general election in November 2022, and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, whose Maoist Centre is the third-largest party with 30 seats in the House of Representatives, has already changed alliances three times. He contested the election together with the Nepali Congress and other fringe parties, became prime minister with the CPN-UML's blessing, and ditched that alliance within a few months to realign with the Nepali Congress, but only to now join hands with the UML.

It is probably not an exaggeration to say t...