Zoo Station

King Gyanendra, whose public standing had already taken quite a beating, sacked the government and declared a state of emergency. The Prime Minister and his cabinet are under house arrest, phone and internet lines have been snapped, the press has been censored and flights into and out of Kathmandu have been cancelled. Given the situation with the Maoist insurgency controlling vast tracts of the country, some action was probably called for, but whether an emergency is the answer, we'll see.

The situation in Nepal harks back to a similar situation in India in 1975, when Mrs Gandhi made the biggest political mistake of her life. That said, the situation in Nepal was/is a lot graver given the stand off between the Maoists and the army. I just hope the situation doesn't get so bad that the Indian Army is forced to intervene to calm the situation in Nepal (and prevent any possible flood of refugees across the border).

UPDATE: In the Indian Express, the Indian defency policy guru, C. Raja Mohan has an analysis of the unfolding situation in Nepal. Key Quote?

King Gyanendra has calculated that when it comes to a choice between the monarchy and the Maoists, India and the international community would have no option but to side with him.

UPDATE: Blogdai is running a blog with seemingly updated posts on the situation in Nepal.