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Chairperson of the CPN (Maoist Center), Pushpa Kamal Dahal, has urged royalists to seek their place within the democratic system. The crowd participating in the royalist rally are also Nepalis, he said: if we ignore their demand for a better country, the monarchy and other reactionary elements will try to raise their heads.

“My request to the royalists is—find your place within democracy,” said Dahal while addressing Parliament on Tuesday. He emphasized that democracy belongs equally to both himself and former King Gyanendra Shah, a sentiment enshrined in the constitution. However, he warned that if unconstitutional and undemocratic paths were chosen, the revolutionary forces would once again demonstrate their strength.  

“We must remember the glorious sacrifices of different periods in history with wisdom and gratitude because the achievements gained through those sacrifices are now under threat from reactionary forces,” he said.  

Dahal reiterated that attempts were being made to overturn the people’s hard-earned achievements and that the current situation required simultaneous resistance against both the government’s wrongdoings and regressive forces. “There is now a need to fight on two fronts—against the government’s misdeeds and against reactionary elements,” he said.  

He further stated that allowing the former king to reside in Nepal was a testament to the country’s fundamental and liberal republicanism. “The history of monarchy worldwide is written in blood. But Nepal became an exception. Our liberal approach ensured that the former king was not exiled and was given a safe place to stay. That is how Nepal’s republican history was written,” he said.  

However, he cautioned that perceiving this leniency as a weakness would be a grave mistake. “If anyone thinks that this was a compulsion of the revolution, they are completely mistaken. If our liberalism is seen as a weakness, history may once again unfold with great severity,” he warned.  

Dahal reminded everyone that the republic was not only a result of the Maoists’ armed struggle but also the outcome of sacrifices from marginalized communities, ethnic groups, regions and genders.   “Let everyone remember this: if anyone believes that the sovereign people will once again become subjects, there can be no bigger illusion than that,” he asserted. He added that the presence of royalists in a democratic parliament itself was proof that democracy and monarchy were incomparable.  

However, Dahal blamed the government for the growing royalist activities. “The threats to democracy are not just external. More than external forces, misgovernance by those in power poses a greater challenge from within,” he said. He argued that the declining credibility of the government had emboldened conservative and monarchist forces. 

Dahal, the leader of the main opposition party, also criticized the ruling party for disregarding democratic values, pointing to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s absence during his speech. “When the leader of the main opposition party stands at the rostrum, the prime minister’s continued absence—is it arrogance, lack of etiquette or frustration? You should answer that yourselves,” he remarked.

Previously too, Prime Minister Oli was absent while Dahal addressed the parliament. It is a general trend of the Prime Minister being present while the leader of the main opposition party addresses the parliament and vice-versa. Prime Minister Oli meanwhile was addressing the Koshi Province Assembly on Tuesday.

After Dahal’s speech, Nepali Congress General Secretary Gagan Thapa expressed disagreement with some of Dahal’s remarks about the government. However, he echoed Dahal’s concerns about the need for the government to regain public trust.  

“During the drafting of the constitution, when I spoke about the need for change, I was accused of treason. Many here faced the same accusations. But this democratic republican system allows us to question and even challenge the system itself,” he said.

Thapa stressed that those who support the constitution must find common ground, whether in the government or in the opposition. “We need to maintain at least a minimal level of consensus—to protect the constitution, safeguard constitutional bodies and ensure proper governance,” he said.  

He also urged political leaders to engage in civil and informed debates rather than spreading hatred.   “We can criticize and question, but let’s not spread hate. If we allow hatred to consume us, it will take us all down. Let’s compete, but through civilized and informed discussions, both inside and outside Parliament,” he said.  

Thapa further urged the government to respond to the opposition’s concerns without arrogance. “If the government listens to the grievances of citizens and addresses them without arrogance, those who stand for change will unite through dialogue and good governance,” he added. 

He also stressed the need to address public dissatisfaction. “The people who stood by political parties during the democratic movement are now disillusioned. The government must listen to their concerns and address them before it’s too late,” he warned.

President Ram Chandra Paudel has stressed on the need of strengthening federalism, good governance and the rule of law. 

For this, the President said, the Parliament should play an effective role to make the government responsible and accountable to the people.

"It is your responsibility to make the role of Parliament more effective to make the government responsible and accountable to the people to strengthen federalism, good governance and rule of law," the Head of State said at a program organized at the Office of the President today for handing over the Pokhara Declaration of the Inter-Parliamentary Forum.

President Paudel suggested to the government and the Parliament to develop the Parliament as a place where the voice of the sovereign people can be voiced in the context of complaints being made public that some important constructions have been delayed and there is not enough discussion in Parliament on issues of public concern.

"I expect additional readiness from you to build an efficient, accountable and people-responsive Parliament in the days to come, embracing the opportunity to learn from parliamentary practices," he said.

According to the President's Private Secretariat, the President on the occasion stated that Parliament should position itself as a place for effective law making, budget formulation, policy formulation and raising the voice of the people.

The President was of the view that the federal parliament should create an inclusive, long-term and development-friendly legal framework.

"Law-making and transparency are beautiful aspects of the democratic system. Therefore, your cooperation is essential for the successful implementation of federalism by further strengthening the role of parliament," he reiterated.

European Union ambassador to Nepal, Veronique Lorenzo, today paid a courtesy call on Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Dipak Khadka.

During the meeting held at the Singha Durbar-based Minister's office, matters relating to EU assistance to Nepal in energy, water resources and irrigation sector were discussed. They also touched on other various issues.

The EU has remained a reliable development partner of Nepal since the establishment of Nepal-EU diplomatic ties in 1974. 

On the occasion, Minister Khadka acknowledged the EU assistance to Nepal for the development of energy, water resources and tourism. He also highlighted the EU's cooperation in the development of clean energy, climate change response and economic stability.  

Sharing about Nepal's goal of producing 25,800 megawatts of electricity by 2035 AD with the EU ambassador, the Minister expected significant support from development partners towards that end.  The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Bill has been presented to the parliament, he apprised her. 

The ambassador said the EU is committed to further cooperating with Nepal's efforts for climate change response and the development of alternative energy. She also lauded Nepal's energy cooperation with its neighbors.

According to her, the EU will ensure further loans and grants for Nepal's energy sector, highlighting the EU's interest in investing in Upper Arun and Dudhkoshi Reservoir-based Projects. The two exchanged dialogues for an inauguration of the Chilime-Trishuli Transmission Line developed with the EC investment, according to the Minister's Secretariat.

US President Donald Trump’s tariffs have spooked investors, with fears of an economic downturn driving a stock market sell-off that has wiped out $4 trillion from the S&P 500’s peak last month, when Wall Street was cheering much of Trump's agenda, Reuters reported.

A barrage of new Trump policies has increased uncertainty for businesses, consumers and investors, notably back-and-forth tariff moves against major trading partners like Canada, Mexico and China.

“We've seen clearly a big sentiment shift,” said Ayako Yoshioka, senior investment strategist at Wealth Enhancement. “A lot of what has worked is not working now.”

The stock market sell-off deepened on Monday. The benchmark S&P 500 fell 2.7%, its biggest daily drop of the year. The Nasdaq Composite slid 4%, its largest one-day decline since September 2022.

The S&P 500 on Monday closed down 8.6% from its February 19 record high, shedding over $4 trillion in market value since then and nearing a 10% decline that would represent a correction for the index. The tech-heavy Nasdaq ended Thursday down more than 10% from its December high.

Trump over the weekend declined to predict whether the US could face a recession as investors worried about the impact of his trade policy.

“The amount of uncertainty that has been created by the tariff wars with regard to Canada, Mexico and Europe, is causing boards and C-suites to reconsider the pathway forward,” Peter Orszag, CEO of Lazard, speaking at the CERAWeek conference in Houston, according to Reuters.

“People can understand ongoing tensions with China, but the Canada, Mexico, and Europe part is confusing. Unless that gets resolved over the next month or so, this could do real damage to the economic prospects of the US and M&A activity,” Orszag said.

Delta Air Lines on Monday slashed its first-quarter profit estimates by half, sending its shares down 14% in aftermarket action. CEO Ed Bastian blamed heightened US economic uncertainty.

Investors are also watching whether lawmakers can pass a funding bill to avert a partial federal government shutdown. A US report on inflation looms on Wednesday.

“The Trump administration seems a little more accepting of the idea that they're OK with the market falling, and they're potentially even OK with a recession in order to exact their broader goals,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategist at Baird. “I think that's a big wake-up call for Wall Street.”

The percentage of total corporate equities and mutual fund shares that are owned by the bottom 50% of the US population, ranked by wealth, stands at about 1%, while the same measure for the top 10% of the population by wealth stood at 87%, according to Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis data as of July 2024.

The S&P 500 tallied back-to-back gains of over 20% in 2023 and 2024, led by mega-cap technology and tech-related stocks such as Nvidia and Tesla that have struggled so far in 2025, dragging major indexes.

On Monday, the S&P 500's technology sector dropped 4.3%, while Apple and Nvidia both fell about 5%. Tesla tumbled 15%, shedding about $125 billion in value.

Other risk assets were also punished, with bitcoin dropping 5%.

Some defensive areas of the market held up better, with the utilities sector logging a 1% daily gain. Safe-haven US government debt saw more demand, with benchmark 10-year Treasury yields, which move inversely to prices, down to about 4.22%.

Investorunease

The S&P 500 has given up all gains recorded since Trump's November 5 election, and it is down nearly 3% in that time. Hedge funds reduced exposure to stocks on Friday at the largest amount in more than two years, according to a Goldman Sachs note released on Monday.

Investors had expressed optimism that Trump's expected pro-growth agenda including tax cuts and deregulation would benefit stocks, but uncertainty over tariffs and other changes including federal workforce cuts has dampened sentiment.

“It was the overwhelming consensus that everything was going to be this great environment once President Trump came into office,” said Michael O’Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading.

“Every time you have structural change you're going to have uncertainty and you're going to have friction,” O'Rourke said. “It's understandable people are starting to be a little concerned and starting to take profits.”

Even with the recent sell-off, stock market valuations remain significantly above historic averages. The S&P 500 as of Friday was at just above 21 times earnings estimates for the next year, compared to its long-term average forward P/E of 15.8, according to LSEG Datastream, Reuters reported.

“Many people have been worried about elevated valuations among US equities for some time and looking for the catalyst for a market correction,” said Dan Coatsworth, investment analyst at AJ Bell. “A combination of concerns about a trade war, geopolitical tensions and an uncertain economic outlook could be that catalyst.”

Investors' equity positioning has fallen in recent weeks, dipping to slightly underweight for the first time since briefly hitting that level in August, Deutsche Bank analysts said in a note on Friday.

A further retreat to the bottom of the historic range for equities weighting, as seen during Trump's US-China trade war in 2018-2019, could drag the S&P 500 to as low as 5,300, or down another 5.5% from current levels, they added.

In another sign of growing investor unease, the Cboe Volatility Index on Monday reached its highest closing level since August.

The administration is “still trying to figure out how to define a win politically, economically, and what is the right time frame,” said Edward Al-Hussainy, senior interest rate and currency analyst at Columbia Threadneedle Investments. “And until they do that, it's going to be like this every week.”