Indian reach in Nepali politics can be best seen in how the administration of Pashupatinath mandir is controlled by Indian priests. So, I was trying to understand how they still maintain the control and I traced it back to politics with assumed deductions.

My guess is that Indian priests are well connected to powerful Indian politicians. Why? First religious reason, second the power to influence votes and third (and most important): money. Temples are a huge source of revenue, legit or illegit. These priests keep the politicians happy to retain their position and vice versa. Politicians then return their favor by influencing leaders in India as well as Nepal.

Why then Nepali leaders have to listen to these foreign politicians? The answer is very complex as well as simple. Simple, because, it's India- they always have had huge influence over Nepal. Complex, because the intricacies of power influences are rooted in various levels. If the maoist cadres had to bow in front of India, despite a good support from China, then we know things are serious. My guess is that India threatens Nepal with political instability and mass overturn if Nepali leaders don't cooperate. Money surely must be involved as well.