In Making New Nepal, Amanda Thérèse Snellinger explores the role that student activists play in Nepal's politics. She shows how these students worked to create political change during the turbulent era from 2003 to 2015, when the decade-long Maoist insurgency ended and Nepal became a secular republic with a new constitution. Five student activists who belong to different major political parties are at the center of this study, which explores their participation in oppositional politics and their efforts to become political leaders within the system. Despite their involvement in mass movements for change, however, these activists have ultimately helped regenerate the political system.
Making New Nepal is based on twelve years of multisite field research, in addition to historical sources. The book delivers a well-grounded and nuanced analysis of the process and dynamics of democratic politics in Nepal. While it incorporates perspectives from a wide range of political parties,...
