President Bidhya Devi Bhandari President Bidhya Devi BhandariDespite Nepal being declared a ‘secular’ state constitutionally, traditions, rituals, mythology and legends continue to play a much bigger role in politics and power. As Dashai, the main festival of the Hindus with over 80 per cent of the population begins, security forces are beefed up in and around major ‘Shakti’ and ‘Bhairav’ temples where the President Bidhya Devi Bhandari is scheduled to pay a visit on Sunday. Its impact on Nepal’s politics with prolonged transition and instability and with political leaders discredited, is not hard to speculate. President Bhandari expressed the will to visit shrines Sunday (Maha-Ashtami day) at 4 pm, a time that former King Shah, used to go there routinely each year. Instead, he will be visiting the shrines Sunday at 5 pm, one hour after the President’s scheduled visit.

Source: Indian Express October 08, 2016 10:30 UTC