Nepal, May 11 -- The Balendra Shah government's recent set of ordinances has triggered a sweeping purge of political appointees across public institutions, raising questions about the independence, competence and morale of Nepal's bureaucracy. The controversy surrounding the recommendation of a new Chief Justice has further intensified concerns over whether the state is moving toward a performance-based system or merely replacing one form of political patronage with another.

The Post's Biken K Dawadi sat down with Umesh Mainali, former Home Secretary and former Public Service Commission chair, to discuss the risks of paralysing institutions if meritocratic systems are not strengthened, the pitfalls of politicised search committees, the e...