Namaste, diaspora family! Dashain tika is behind us, the marigolds are out for Tihar, and the news did not take a holiday. Leaked chats between a Supreme Court justice and an alleged fixer have put Nepal’s top court under a cloud. In the US, a court ruling has left the 2027 visa lottery with no opening date. And Nepal wants the world to count six more of its mountains as 8,000ers. Let’s dive in.
🌍 Diaspora & Globalisation
The DV Lottery Is On Hold Again
If you or a cousin back home were waiting for DV-2027 entries to open on November 1, that date is gone. On October 29 a three-judge panel of the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals paused a lower-court order that had told the State Department to announce registration by October 29, open it by November 1 and notify winners by December 3. The judges found that the San Diego law firm that brought the case, Red Eagle Law, was not within the “zone of interests” the Diversity Visa law protects, though they added: “We do not endorse the Department’s failure to open the lottery registration period.” The appeal continues, and the firm says it plans further litigation. For now, DV-2027 registration is not open and has no set date. The programme offers up to 55,000 visas a year. Beware anyone selling “early entry” in the meantime. (NepYork)
The Other Diaspora Heads Back to India
Most of us left through Tribhuvan airport. Thousands from Sudurpaschim leave by bus. With Dashain tika done, workers from Dadeldhura, Baitadi, Doti, Achham, Bajhang and Bajura are crossing through Kailali and Kanchanpur back to jobs in Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai. Khem Bhatta from Ganyapdhura has worked in India for eight to ten years and returned to Chennai after receiving tika. “There are not many opportunities for jobs or business here,” he said. “India has become our main source of employment.” Sabitri Nepali, who works in Bengaluru with her husband, hopes to come back for New Year if she can get the time off. The open border means this diaspora rarely appears in airport departure figures, but its remittances keep whole districts running. (Kathmandu Post)
In Brief: Safety, recruitment and a school that keeps going. - After the October 21 drone attacks that killed a Nepali worker at a Saudi oil field, Nepal’s embassy in Riyadh told Nepalis to stay indoors during alerts, share no unverified videos, and check flights with airlines before heading to the airport. About 400,000 Nepalis work in Saudi Arabia. (Kathmandu Post) - Operators of all 25 “principal” Nepali agencies on Malaysia’s FWCMS recruitment list remain out of contact after a minister ordered their arrest on October 14. One operator was arrested, then freed after the Supreme Court found his detention unlawful. (Onlinekhabar) - In Barcelona, former nurse Sarala Sapkota’s Saturday Nepali school has grown from five children in 2014 to about 40 today. “Starting something is easy, but continuing it is difficult,” she says. (Onlinekhabar)
🏛️ Politics & Governance
Leaked Chats Put the Supreme Court Under a Cloud
The newspaper Naya Patrika published WhatsApp messages between Supreme Court Justice Hari Prasad Phuyal and Inam Sapkota, a 30-year-old accused of using powerful connections to influence state institutions, who has been detained since September 27. In the reported messages, Sapkota asks Phuyal to dismiss a businessman’s habeas corpus petition: “The prime minister is also interested in this matter. Please dismiss it.” Phuyal admits the messages and a meeting, but says he did not act on the request and denies any money changed hands: “Financial matters never came up in my conversations with him.” He says Sapkota “introduced himself as a person working for Prime Minister Balendra Shah,” and that the judges reported him to the PM’s office. According to Phuyal, the office said it had heard rumours but knew of no officials who had met Sapkota. Separate documents reportedly show deposits into accounts linked to Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Sharma and others. Sharma denies knowing Sapkota. Bar associations want an impartial probe. None has been announced. (Kathmandu Post, Phuyal’s account)
Delhi Visit Takes Shape
Prime Minister Balendra Shah’s first official visit to New Delhi is now “most likely” on November 22, at Narendra Modi’s invitation, though it has not been officially confirmed. The groundwork is scheduled for next week. India’s new ambassador, Sudhakar Dalela, is due to arrive on November 3. Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri is expected on November 4 for a three-day visit, which a senior Nepali official confirmed but neither government has announced. Misri’s May trip was postponed, which the Post links to protocol issues, Shah’s refusal to meet him and the Lipulekh dispute. Whether they meet this time is unclear. India-funded project launches and new aid, including support for rebuilding after the Bhotekoshi flood, are expected around the visit. For the many Nepalis working in India, smoother ties usually mean smoother borders. (Kathmandu Post)
In Brief: Old alliances and new quotas. - UML and the Nepali Communist Party have an “initial understanding” to explore an alliance for next year’s local and provincial polls, after winning a combined 20.93% of the proportional vote in March. “This does not mean there is any possibility of an immediate party merger,” said Pushpa Kamal Dahal. (Kathmandu Post) - Only 69 of the Nepali Congress’s 231 elected central committee members are women, short of the party’s one-third rule. President Gagan Thapa must now name at least 30 women among his 66 nominees. (Kathmandu Post)
💸 Economy & Development
Three More Years Before Leaving the LDC Club
The UN General Assembly has unanimously given Nepal and Bangladesh until November 24, 2029 to graduate from least-developed-country status, three years later than the original November 24, 2026 date. Nepal asked for the extension in May. It cited economic uncertainty, geopolitical tension, supply-chain disruption and risks to remittances. The worry is losing duty-free, quota-free access to big markets. Government studies projected that productive-sector jobs could fall by up to 35% after graduation without transition measures. “This extension is not a retreat, but an investment in lasting progress,” said Assembly president Khalilur Rahman. For readers abroad, this matters more than it sounds. A weaker export base at home means more young people looking for work overseas, and an economy leaning even harder on what you send. (Kathmandu Post)
Flood Insurance: Rs 20.9 Billion Claimed, 4% Paid
Seven weeks after the Bhotekoshi floods, insurers had paid Rs 821.39 million of the Rs 20.9 billion claimed, about 4%, according to the Nepal Insurance Authority’s figures to October 16. Property policies account for the largest claims by value: 576 claims worth Rs 9.56 billion. Motor insurance has the most claims, at 1,067. The authority expects the total to rise. Chanki Chhetri, former president of the Nepal Insurers’ Association, defends the pace: “It has not yet been two months since the flood,” he said, adding that payments are now flowing “as the situation has become more manageable.” If your family has a house, shop or vehicle insured in the flood zone, now is the time to make sure the paperwork is complete. Payouts only move once the procedures are done. (Kathmandu Post)
In Brief: Debt, trade and a border that keeps shutting. - Nepal’s public debt passed Rs 3 trillion for the first time in mid-October, at 45.59% of GDP. First-quarter debt repayments of Rs 98.87 billion dwarfed capital spending of Rs 28.42 billion. (Onlinekhabar) - First-quarter exports jumped 57% to Rs 114.28 billion, led by soybean oil, but imports of Rs 646.78 billion pushed the trade deficit to Rs 532.49 billion. (myRepublica) - The Tatopani crossing with China reopened to cargo for three days, October 18–20, letting in 72 containers, and has been shut to freight again since. No one has said when it will reopen. (Kathmandu Post)
⭐ Social & Cultural
Sixteen, Slingy and Taking Wickets
The NPL’s breakout star isn’t Warner or Russell. It’s Rahul Yadav, a 16-year-old pacer from Janakpur’s talent hunt, picked from 446 hopefuls across Madhesh. Against Kathmandu Gorkhas in Kirtipur he took four wickets, two of them with the first ball of an over, as the Gorkhas were bowled out for 115 and Janakpur won by eight wickets. On debut against Karnali he had already taken two. “His speed and different slingy action is not easy to pick by batters,” said Sharad Vesawkar, the Gorkhas’ own cricket director. Teammate Moeen Ali was simpler: “He is really really good.” Nepali players won Player of the Match in each of the first six games, a nice answer to the overseas-stars headlines. If you’re watching from abroad, learn the name now. (Kathmandu Post, Onlinekhabar)
Eight 8,000ers, or Fourteen?
Nepal has asked the world’s mountaineering federation, the UIAA, to recognise six more of its peaks as separate 8,000-metre mountains. That would raise Nepal’s official count from eight to 14. The six are Yalung Khang (8,505m), Kanchenjunga South (8,476m), Kanchenjunga Central (8,473m), Lhotse Middle (8,410m), Lhotse Shar (8,400m) and Yalung Khang West (8,077m). Tourism Minister Khadak Raj Paudel and Nepal Mountaineering Association president Fur Gelje Sherpa made the pitch at the UIAA general assembly, held this year in Kathmandu. “We believe this will also help establish Nepal as a leading destination for the world’s highest mountains,” Paudel said. Nepal’s own records already list 14, after a 2025 revision. The UIAA has not responded, and no decision date has been set, so for now the world still counts eight. (Kathmandu Post)
In Brief: Films, weather and flowers. - Gauthali has sold 944,817 tickets and grossed Rs 260.31 million at home, more than double its nearest rival, making it the year’s biggest Nepali hit. (Himalayan Times) - Cyclone Arnab weakened before reaching Nepal and brought mostly light to moderate rain and snow. Forecasters expect its effects to ease from Saturday afternoon. (Kathmandu Post) - Kathmandu Valley is expected to get through 5.18 million flower garlands this Tihar. (Kathmandu Post)
Question of the week: Did the DV lottery shape your family’s story, or someone you know? Reply or comment. I read every one.
This edition is brought to you by belayat.uk, UK Nepali classifieds for jobs, housing and events. Next week: Tihar, the run-up to Misri’s visit, and the NPL at the halfway mark.
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Until next week, stay connected! — Binit, for the Nepali Diaspora Digest
