Chief Minister Pokharel, an old school Nepali Congress leader, started demonstrating his lust for power right after he took office in June, 2021. He has crossed all the limits this time.  The recent decision of his government to allocate millions of rupees for memorials and trusts opened in the names of parents of the ministers, including Chief Minister’s, has drawn flak from the general public, opposition parties, and even supporters of the ruling alliance.

He has allocated Rs 5 million for the Gobardhan Sharma Smriti Trust established in Tanahun in the name of his father. 

Similarly, Rs 10 million has been allocated for the trust established in the name of the father and mother of Gandaki province Education Minister Mekhalal Shrestha. After the public backlash, Shrestha has asked Finance Minister Ramji Baral to withhold the budget allocated for the trust. 

If our federalism is under threat from any source, it is from the self-centered working style of political leaders who spend the taxpayers’ money for personal benefits, say experts.

Also, Rs two million was allocated to construct a Smriti Park (a memorial) in the name of the father of the Nepali Congress leader of the Gandaki province Arjun Prasad Joshi. The Gandaki province government also allocated Rs two million to make a Pratisthan Bhawan in the name of the late Nepali Congress leader from Parbat district, Dilli Ram Lamichhane.

In a shameless act of being distributive, his government has allocated millions for such purposes.

This has happened at a time when the country is under serious economic strain and experts are warning the policymakers and the governments against reckless spending of state resources, amid the real fears and prospects of Nepal facing the worst economic crisis like that of Sri Lanka.

The sector to which the Gandaki Chief Minister has allocated the budget is not only unproductive but also stands as a case of flagrant misuse of the hard-earned money of the taxpayers.

The revelation that the Gandaki province is spending money like water has triggered public outrage on social media and beyond. Members from the opposition parties have demanded answers from the Chief Minister. 

Notorious beginning 

This is not the first time Gandaki Chief Minister has attempted to misuse taxpayers’ money for reckless spending. Pokharel’s beginning was notorious. What we are seeing now is the continuity of notoriety rampant in his actions and decisions. 

Last year in June, soon after he was appointed Chief Minister of Gandaki Province, Pokharel called for the first Cabinet meeting which decided to provide services and benefits to the ex-chief ministers of the province. 

In May this year, a task force was formed to forge the necessary laws to provide benefits to the ex-officials of the Gandaki province government. The task force was assigned the work to draft laws based on provisions of the services/benefits of the ex-officials in other provinces and federal government.

Too little too late

Following the public outcry, the Chief Minister has decided not to implement the plan to allocate the budget to the trust named after his father. But experts say that to even think of spending the money on such an unproductive sector amounts to a height of irresponsibility.  According to them, if there had been no public outcry, they would not change their minds and this also shows the intention was to misuse the taxpayers’ money without accountability.  

“They should have restrained themselves from spending in the unproductive sector considering the economic crisis the country is facing,” said Chandra Mani Adhikari, who is an economist. “Budget should not be allocated in the unproductive sector like making towers and statues. If the citizens become prosperous, they will themselves make idols, statues, and towers in the name of their respected leaders.”

According to him, such activities can have adverse impacts on the federalization process itself. “Our federal system is itself full of flaws. Such spending in unproductive sectors might lead the people to question the need for federalism itself,” he said.

Following the scandalous decision by the Gandaki province, some in social media have started to demand that provincial structures should be scrapped.   

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has set a new benchmark with record-low performance in governance, accountability, transparency and rule of law. 

Case one:

On January 19, Renu Kumari Yadav, the Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport, issued a threat to CK Raut to the effect that he could meet the same fate as those who were killed at the rice mill of Gaur in 2007.

CK Raut’s Janamat Party was launching a Farmers’ Movement in Tarai, raising farmers’ concerns. They had declared to boycott the ministers from the provincial and federal governments. And they tried to obstruct Yadav’s entry into Gaur that day.

Following the incident, a group of citizens drew the attention of the government to take action against Renu for threatening to repeat the ‘Gaur massacre.’ They made a fresh appeal to each political party represented in the government to take action against the minister.

No action has been taken against her.

Case two:

Minister for Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, Prem Bahadur Ale has earned a notoriety for foul-mouthing the government bureaucrats and pronouncing vulgar and obscene words. 

He is accused of assaulting the chairman of the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal. He also had allegedly assaulted Nepal Airlines Corporation Executive Director Yuvaraj Adhikar. An audio recording of Minister Ale speaking obscenely to the executive chairman of the Nepal Airlines Corporation, Yuvaraj Adhikari and seriously alleging him of manipulating the master plan of the Lumbini Development Fund got viral recently. 

There is a rallying cry that action should be taken against Minister Ale. Deuba has turned deaf ears to this call. No question has been raised about Ale. 

Case three:

Finance Minister Janardan Sharma stands accused of allowing a person—unauthorized by all means—to alter tax provisions on certain items such as electric vehicles from the budget draft the Ministry of Finance officials had finalized, just before he presented the budget in Parliament on May 29.

Earlier he was accused of suspending the governor of Nepal Rastra Bank to serve the interests of business elites.

[Related: Authority without accountability: Deuba government’s blatant indifference to ‘financial crime’ by Finance Minister]

Leaders from the main opposition as well as those from the ruling Nepali Congress have been asking the Prime Minister to take action against him for committing a financial crime. 

Deuba has turned deaf ears to this call.

Case four:

Prime Minister’s spouse Arzu Deuba has been giving one after another controversial statement. On May 5, she threatened the voters in the Far-west that if the candidates, other than those favored by her party, are elected in the municipality, the federal government would ‘stop sending money’ to that municipality. 

She was found to promise to send the locals to the Gulf if they voted for her candidate.

The Prime Minister is remaining silent on critical issues and playing a major role in promoting lawlessness in the country, ignoring the constitutional values and processes.

More recently,  she made an allegation against the Kathmandu Mayor.  Party insiders say that his spouse does not only intervene in policy decisions but is bringing disrepute to the country and the party. They say that Deuba, as the PM and president of the Nepali Congress, does not care at all about how his spouse is defaming his position.

Case five: 

Prime minister Deuba skipped the Parliament meeting on June 16 and attended a function organized by NRNA. At the meeting, he was supposed to answer the questions regarding the controversial SPP, which the government has now decided to reject. 

The prime minister avoided the House when the lawmakers were demanding his response to the SPP controversy and his visit to the US. Home Minister Bal Krishna Khand and Communication minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki responded to the questions of lawmakers, the questions which the PM himself had to answer.

Master of misrule  

The Prime Minister is remaining silent on critical issues and playing a major role in promoting lawlessness in the country, ignoring the constitutional values and processes. Experts say that his primary focus has never been good governance, accountability and rule of law. They say that his only focus is how to hold on to power and that he never has been a true believer in the constitutional process. “Deuba anyhow wants to become a prime minister and sustain his prime ministerial post,” said CK Lal, a political commentator. “I don’t think he is a believer of democratic process other than an election and the provision that the winner should lead the government.”

So why does he stand unopposed despite becoming a master of misrule?

CK Lal has the answer: He is not facing challenges in the government and in the party, geopolitics is in his favor,  there is no rebellion against his bad moves, those who used to question him are now under his protection.

Wastes were lying uncollected in the streets of the capital city for a long time, even before the local polls of May 13. 

With chairpersons of ward no 1, 2 and 3 of Kakani Rural Municipality of Nuwakot and ward no 1 and 3 of Dhunibensi Municipality of Dhading district agreeing to the deal, there is a hope that it has paved the way for the disposal of garbage from the valley and that we are close to the permanent solution to waste management problem. 

Heaps of garbage in every corner of the valley had made the capital look like a dumping site of a sort, people feared that if left uncollected this could lead to the outbreak of cholera and various life-threatening diseases. 

This was the problem staring at the face of the candidates vying for various positions in the local polls—mayors, deputy mayors and ward chairs. Balen Shah was one of the candidates who came out with a clear commitment to waste management. 

Though the capital city had started to stink back before May 13, there was not much uproar about it because all attention was focused on local polls and results.

Then the local election results came out, and Kathmandu Metropolitan City elected Balen Shah to lead the city for five years. 

The hopes were high that Shah would be able to solve this problem overnight.

He could not, though he made waste disposal the topmost priority of his work.

Relentless efforts 

Balen Shah, however, worked to address the issue from day one. The day after he was declared the Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, he went to Sisdole to talk to and hear the grievances of the locals. 

On May 30, after assuming the office, Mayor Shah summoned the meeting of the municipal executive, which was telecast live, where he made waste disposal a major agenda. 

Balen Shah announced that there would be no celebration of election victory until the wastes are collected.

Meanwhile, the mayor met with all the top leaders of major parties—Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and Maoist Center—during which he is reported to have sought their cooperation and support from them to address the problem of garbage disposal.

He also met the Minister of Urban Development and the chief minister of Bagmati province to seek cooperation and support.

Mayor Shah reached Sisdole twice after he was elected, in a bid to solve the problem.

Then on June 6, an agreement was signed between the Ministry of Urban Development and the newly elected representatives, according to which, garbage disposal was to be started right from June 7. But when garbage trucks reached Sisdole, the locals rose in protest.

A scuffle followed between the locals and the police. Some locals were arrested, and a couple of police personnel were injured in the incident.

In the whole saga, only one man was singled out as failing to address the problem–Mayor Balen Shah–though Shah is only one of the actors responsible for the job. Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba called the Mayor on Thursday to his office and instructed him to address the garbage disposal problem. The mayor of Lalitpur, nor that of Bhaktapur, was called to the meeting. It was as if only Balen was responsible for the job of waste management in the capital city.

The truth is apart from Kathmandu Metropolitan city, garbage was not collected from a number of municipalities, at least 10 in Kathmandu, at least six in Lalitpur and at least four in Bhaktapur of Kathmandu valley.

Nearly all of these municipalities dump their wastes in Sisdole. As such, the elected representatives of all these municipalities, apart from the municipalities of Nuwakot and Dhading, should have coordinated and worked together for garbage disposal. Their roles or lack thereof should also have been questioned. In both of the documents, that of June 6 and 10, one sees the signature of Balen Shah, not that of the mayors of Lalitpur and Bhaktapur.

The question was raised only about one man: Balen Shah. 

At the frontline of the mission to single him out have been the leaders and cadres of the ruling Nepali Congress and CPN-UML. On a television show, Ram Kumari Jhakri, the minister of Urban Development, pointed out that Congress leaders were obstructing the efforts made by her ministry and Balen Shah to dispose of the wastes. 

The mayor of Kathmandu has been able to act up to some of his promises.  He promised to live telecast the first meeting of the municipal council. He did. He promised to start the operation of an infrastructure ambulance. He has done that too.  

The mayor of Kathmandu has been able to act up to some of his promises.  He promised to live telecast the first meeting of the municipal council. He did. He promised to start the operation of an infrastructure ambulance. He has done that too. His idea of transforming the toilets of hotels and restaurants—with the consent of the latter—into public toilets has met a partial success.  A number of hotels and restaurants have cooperated with him and allowed the public to use their toilets. He promised to start a call center at the KMC to hear the complaints of the people and it has been set up. 

 Reason for resistance

Yet, why has there been what looks like a collective opposition and non-cooperation from the political parties toward the mayor of Kathmandu?

Observers say it’s a deep sense of fear, challenge and insecurity that Balen phenomenon has posed to the politics without delivery which the political parties have practiced for years.

“This is because the political parties were doing the politics without delivery for years. And people like Balen challenged this kind of politics and promised the politics of delivery,” Anjali Subedi, a commentator and freelance journalist told Nepal Live Today. “When someone starts delivering, those who do not deliver naturally feel a threat.  There is no other reason than that.”

According to her, Balen gave a message that the kind of politics that the traditional parties have been doing for the last several decades has taken the country nowhere. And only politics that succeeds and should succeed is the one that actually delivers. 

“Once Balen starts delivering, it will expose the incompetence of the political parties and they will be seen as a worthless bunch of people. This is the fear they have,” she said. 

Sarala Gautam, the author of Dumero, who has been closely following the rise of independent candidates in the local polls, is disappointed with the way the leaders of the political parties are trying to discredit Balen. “The way political leaders tried to behave with him, their gestures, tone and statements are objectionable,” she said. “Come to think of it, the political parties which are not cooperating with Balen were the ones who created the mess, way back in the past before Balen was even born.  They should actually have been thankful to people like Balen that they are emerging and are trying to clean up that mess created by them.”  

She argues that the political parties should have collectively apologized to the new generation of people like Balen for the mess they created.  “Our generation is suffering because of the politics without accountability that they almost institutionalized. Instead, they have been trying to create hurdles. He is having to knock the doors of every political leader and ask them to cooperate.  Citizens are having to raise their voice that Balen should be allowed to work. He is trying to clean up the mess that remained for over 30 years,” said Gautam.

According to her, Balen’s way of doing politics marks a shift from leader-centric politics to people-centric politics. “He has started a new phenomenon that politics should be about addressing the needs of the people rather than satisfying and fulfilling the needs of the leaders as individuals.” 

Gautam believes the political leaders think when Balen succeeds they might lose in the upcoming federal parliament elections. “They are spreading the message that he cannot do anything without the support of the political parties because they feel threatened. They are worried that when Balen succeeds they might lose the federal and provincial elections and more independent and honest youths will rise in politics,” she said. 

Because they have been failing the people and failing to deliver they want to prove that independent candidates also fail. In her view, it’s a continuation of trying to succeed in politics by making others fail. 

“They had not thought Balen would win. And when he did win, they were shocked.”  

One positive thing, she says, about the whole story is that people are watching and they are not going to tolerate any shenanigans on the part of the political parties against Balen. 

What next?

So how should the young mayor tackle the challenges that he may have to confront in the days to come? Both Anjali Subedi and Sarala Gautam have their recommendations. 

“He should continue to work with the current spirit. Balen has been trying to seek support from every stakeholder. He is not blaming anyone.  This is a good sign. He seems to have foreseen the kind of obstacles that could be posed by his opponents,” said Gautam. According to her, he should do everything in a transparent manner.  “He has been working tirelessly. He has been demonstrating leadership qualities.  He should continue with that,” she said. “If he continues with the current spirit, he will continue to receive overwhelming public support.” 

According to her, we the people should also be watchful and perceptive. Now that there are signs of Balen succeeding, some political leaders are trying to give the impression that garbage disposal became possible because they supported Balen. “Let us not be misled. This is the sign of these leaders slowly accepting the leadership of Balen.” 

Anjali Subedi believes that Balen should work carefully and should never deviate from his goal, come what may. He should be coordinating with relevant stakeholders.  “He should be mindful of what the people need and want from the leadership.” According to her, a person cannot know everything. “Thus it would be better for him to form a team of experts of various sectors who would provide him advice in good faith. And he should guard himself against falling into the trap of dirty politics,” she said.

Most of all, says Subedi, he should distance himself from the interest groups and sycophants who might encourage him to take decisions to serve their personal interests. Accordion to her, even the leaders who start well soon lose the momentum and begin to fall into the vicious circle of interest groups and they fail to deliver. “This is something he needs to really be mindful about.”  

The main idea is not to deviate from his goal and the promises. “Most of all, he should not fall for populism,” she concluded.

A few days ago, this writer had noted five scenarios for the upcoming federal elections–two of them related to the alliance between the communist forces in Nepal. Experts, political commentators, and even leaders of communist parties have started to debate whether the upcoming federal parliamentary elections will also witness a communist alliance.

Conflicting message 

Communist leaders in Nepal have given differing opinions about the prospects of the communist alliance for federal polls–while some openly push for it, others strongly stand opposed. 

On June 3, CPN (Unified Socialist) senior leader Jhalanath Khanal called the communist alliance a sine qua non for the country today at the Parliament building in New Baneshwor. “Communist alliance is a necessity. But the leaders who claim to be flagbearers of the communist movement are themselves against the unity,” he said. 

On June 1, CPN Maoist Center Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda warned the Nepali Congress–the largest party of the current ruling alliance–at an orientation program held for the elected representatives. Comparing Nepali Congress with the main opposition CPN-UML, he said, “If the NC behaves like CPN-UML, we will be compelled to rebel against such moves.” Prachanda’s remarks indirectly hint at a possibility of a change of course by the party. 

Reportedly, Prachanda and CPN (Unified Socialist) chairman Madhav Kumar Nepal have claimed that they have been offered the prime ministerial post (the source of the offer is suspected to be the CPN-UML). And, according to some leaders of the CPN (US) and the Maoist Center, informal talks are underway between the second-level leaders of the communist parties about forming the communist alliance. 

CPN-UML Deputy General Secretary Prithivi Subba Gurung states that the communist parties should think a step forward and two steps back. “To take the politics to progressive direction, an alliance needs to be forged. Different forces tried to break the unity of the senior leaders which resulted in the current situation,” he said, adding that he would make efforts for the formation of the communist alliance. 

CPN (US) chair Madhav Kumar Nepal, however, has denied the possibility of a communist alliance at present. At a program organized in Surkhet on June 2, Nepal denied any truth in the rumors about the CPN (US), Maoist Center, and UML teaming up. 

Why alliance again?

The main opposition CPN-UML lost a considerable number of seats in the local polls.  Some UML leaders, therefore, could be mulling the possibility of a communist as a strategy for the party to secure a majority in the federal elections. Besides, other communist leaders of the ruling alliance are also not happy with the local election results and feel betrayed. This has also, to some extent, kept the probability of communist forces joining hands for the federal elections.

Experts see the talks about the communist alliance in a different light.  

“The emerging talks about an alliance by some communist leaders is a matter of political bargaining,” said Hari Roka, a political analyst. “In the last elections, not all the leaders and cadres voted for the common candidates fielded by the ruling alliance, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction and a feeling of betrayal,” among communist leaders. That’s why, according to him, the rumors and talks of a new communist alliance have emerged. 

The political parties in Nepal compromise their ideologies while forging an alliance. They form the alliance first and only then start to talk about the common programs. “In such politics, obviously, lack of trust will prevail and these voices will appear,” Roka added. 

Another political analyst Dr Indra Adhikari points to the foreign factor. She says that the influence of foreign powers could be a reason behind some communist leaders talking about forming a communist alliance for the federal elections. Foreign powers want to bind other countries in their sphere of influence, she said. The northern neighbor, according to her, wants to see a united and robust communist force to be in power.

Apart from that, the talk about the formation of a communist alliance is also an indication that their parties have the space for other forces too. “They seem to be sending a message to UML chief KP Oli that communist parties in the current ruling coalition are not negative about forming an alliance.” For her, the timing of this messaging is also important. “Some leaders have started strategically hinting about a communist alliance after the local elections,” she said, adding, “they believe the bargaining with the party bagging the highest number of seats in local elections would guarantee more seats for them in the federal elections.” 

What’s the prospect? 

Adhikari does not see any prospect of the communist alliance in the near future. “It can happen in the distant future but not now nor in the federal election. We should not forget that the parties in the ruling alliance came together in opposition to UML chief’s move of dissolving the House of Representatives twice.”

According to Adhikari, the mere wish of the CPN (US) and Maoist Center does not make the communist alliance a reality. “The CPN-UML should also concur,” she said. “They split from CPN-UML due to disputes and turmoil in the party. Besides, Oli is not agreeing to rethink his previous moves and is repeatedly undermining and insulting the other communist leaders even today.”

On May 17, 2018, when CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center) had merged to form the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), the largest communist force Nepal had ever seen. The leaders glorified the unification as the “game-changer” in the history of Nepali communist movement. But the Supreme Court in March annulled the merger, sending CPN-UML and Maoist Centre back to their pre-merger status. The court, with the verdict, revived the erstwhile UML and the Maoist party. 

The SC’s verdict came at a time when the internal conflicts were rife in NCP. 

Similarly, following internal rifts between Madhav Nepal and Oli, CPN-UML officially split in August 2021. Madhav Nepal then registered a new political party named CPN (Unified Socialist). 

Roka, for his part, says given the past contradictions, disputes and split between the communist leaders, it is quite sure a communist alliance especially the alliance of CPN-US and Maoist Center with CPN-UML is not a chance in the near future. 

According to him, Oli’s continuity as the most powerful leader in UML also renders alliance possibility too distant. 

The ruling coalition–Nepali Congress, CPN-Maoist Center, CPN (Unified Socialist), Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal (JSPN), and Rashtriya Janamorcha–had forged an electoral alliance for the local polls while the CPN-UML fought independently in most places across the country. 

As many as 145,010 candidates threw their hats in the ring in the local elections held nationwide on 13 May, and 64 percent out of 17,733, 733 registered voters cast their ballots.

The result sheet

The results of the local elections are out (except only Budhiganga Rural Municipality of Bajura where the Election Commission has declared a repoll).

Nepali Congress bagged 329 chair/mayor and 301 deputy chair/deputy mayor positions while CPN-UML won 205 chairs and 240 deputy positions. CPN-Maoist Center won 121 chairs and 126 deputy positions, while Janata Samajbadi Party bagged 30 chief and 31 deputy chief positions. The CPN (US), a splinter faction of CPN-UML, won 20 chair and 24 deputy positions. 

The Maoists Center did well creating a necessary political space by winning a decent number of seats. Electoral alliance with Nepali Congress and other ruling parties proved to be a boon for the party, at a critical time when it had nearly completely lost its stronghold and trust among the people. 

The result is satisfactory for Nepali Congress, though, it is argued, it could have done even better if it faced the polls without an electoral alliance with other parties in the government. The grand old democratic party put its ideologies at stake by forming an alliance with the hardcore communist forces. 

The CPN-UML also played well against the five-party alliance, although its seats were reduced at the local levels. It had bagged 294 chair and 331 deputy positions back in 2017 local polls. The party has, to a large extent, maintained its popular vote against the alliance. 

The newly formed CPN (US) had hoped for more. But it came fifth, behind JSPN, a Tarai-based party, which also did not fare well.

Now that poll results are out, there are estimations and calculations regarding the parties’ strategies in the upcoming federal elections, both inside and outside the political parties. The local poll outcomes are most likely going to impact the strategies to be followed in the upcoming elections. 

How will Nepali political parties fare in the upcoming elections then? What will be their election strategies after the local poll results? Here are some possible scenarios. 

Possible scenarios:

1. Nepali Congress carries on with the current ruling coalition for the federal elections. As the result of the local poll was satisfactory, it can forge an electoral alliance (with all other four parties or only with Maoists), to secure majority seats in the parliament. 

2. Forging an electoral alliance with the communist force will be a matter of contention within Nepali Congress and some of its prominent leaders are going to stand against the move. It will spark a heated discussion inside the party for NC could have done equally good in the local polls without an alliance.  In that case, it is possible that Congress will face the parliamentary elections independently to become the largest party in the parliament.

3. The local polls have pushed Maoist Center to a comfortable bargaining position. It will then bargain with both CPN-UML and Nepali Congress. There can be two possibilities in that case. One, Maoist Center will continue the alliance with NC, which will be ideologically incompatible. A democratic force and a communist force have been polar opposites throughout the history of Nepal. So, the continuation of the current alliance will still face headwinds from their party cadres and leaders. Two, Maoist Center will form an electoral alliance with CPN-UML. The ex patron party with similar ideologies will be much easier for the party to pair with. They, together, might fare very well in the election as in the past. However, the bitter experience they had together can make the leaders reluctant about coming into an alliance again.

4. Will each political party vie independently? There is a very slim chance for this scenario as the CPN-US and Maoist Center are in dire need of support and backup regardless of the local polls result.

5. There is also a chance for communist forces to come together. All the communist forces, with some Tarai-based parties, might stand together in a bid to garner a majority in the parliament. But, given the pretty cold relations the top communist leaders share with each other, this looks like a remote possibility. 

A number of independent candidates have risen to lead the country’s municipalities and palikas–Nepal’s local government units which are also called the governments at people’s doorsteps as the locally elected representatives remain connected to the people.  

As many as 13 independent candidates won the top posts of palikas. Incorporating them, a total of 385 candidates bagged various posts at the local levels. In some large cities, such as Kathmandu, Dharan, Dhangadhi, and others, voters made a historic shift away from political party candidates toward independent candidates.

On Sunday, Harka Sampang Rai, a mayoral candidate in Dharan defeated Kishore Rai–a candidate from the ruling alliance (from Nepali Congress). Harka secured 20,821 votes while Kishore garnered 16,059. Starting as a campaigner against local problems, Rai also vied for the mayoral position in 2019, after the death of the incumbent mayor, Tara Subba. He could only garner 422 votes and secure the fifth position. 

But this did not discourage him from raising his voice and exerting pressure on the concerned authorities to address Dharan’s problems. He campaigned for the election on his own, roaming from street to street with a microphone in his hand, and appealing for votes to change the fate of the city. A good singer and guitarist, Rai, has now succeeded in winning Dharane Junta’s trust. 

Similarly, Gopal Hamal, an independent candidate, won the mayor’s post in the Dhangadhi sub-metropolitan with 26,865 votes. In the 2017 elections, he had vied for the mayor’s position but was not able to win. 

In Kathmandu, independent mayoral candidate Balen Shah, a heartthrob of youths, who is also a rapper and structural engineer, won the election securing 61,767 votes against CPN UML’s Keshav Sthapit and Nepali Congress’s Srijana Singh. He, who contested with an election symbol Lauro, was the most popular among the independent candidates all over the nation. 

According to some media reports, even in the places where there were no candidates contesting with the symbol Lauro, thousands of votes were cast for the symbol. This suggests how the influence of Balen was spreading outside the Kathmandu Valley as well. 

In Nepal, it is not easy for someone with a non-political background to compete for a coveted public position like a mayor. But these independent candidates have overcome all the difficulties to bag the coveted public position, by gaining the public’s trust and emerging as a ray of hope. 

Poor delivery, lack of development, and bad governance by the leaders of the established political parties have frustrated people all across the country, compelling them to seek alternatives. 

In Kathmandu, Dharan and Dhangadhi voters made a historic shift away from political party candidates toward independent candidates.

However, the popularity and a hard-won success also open the door to both the opportunities and challenges for the independent candidates. Experts say that equal opportunities and challenges are waiting for them in the coming days.  

Opportunities and challenges

Krishna Prasad Sapkota, a local governance expert, said this could be an opportunity to get connected and develop relations with all political parties for independent representatives. “As we all know political parties take to blaming each other and behave like rivals. The independent representatives are different from them and so they can gain the trust of all. There will probably be less prejudice and hatred,” he said.  

But there are challenges as well. 

“They lack organizations and are all on their own. Other representatives elected from the political process might hinder the operation of the local government and the overall development of the local level,” Sapkota added. “If the relations between the independent representatives, other representatives, and stakeholders are not sound, it will have adverse effects on the overall conduct of the local governments.” 

Sapkota believes that every winner is the representative of the general public. They are accountable to the law and the constitution and the larger public.

What is the message?

Many in Nepal see the victory of independent candidates in local polls as the result of people’s frustration with and lack of trust in traditional political parties such as the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML. Is that the only case?  

Jagat Nepal, a senior journalist, and writer, categorizes the independent representatives elected in the local elections into three groups. First, the rebel candidates who were denied tickets for the election from their respective parties as in Janakpur and who will eventually return to their respective parties.  The candidates who had contested the earlier election as independent candidates fall into the second category. The fresh candidates, like Balen Shah, make a new category. 

According to Jagat Nepal, winning independent candidates in some major cities and other local levels is the result of the bad governance of the political parties, unnecessary slogans, and populist agendas lacking actions. 

“It is the public’s reaction over position holders. And, if the political parties don’t correct their course on time, the trend of electing independent candidates will reach every nook and corner of the country,” he said adding that it is the reaction to the bad activities of political parties and a message that the public will seek alternatives if the political parties fail to live up to their promise. 

Even the political leaders admit that the wins of independent candidates carry a significant meaning. 

Arjun Narasingha KC, a Nepali Congress leader, wrote on Twitter, “Independent candidates have been elected in the Palikas in a dozen of places including Kathmandu, Dhangadhi, and Dharan. In a democracy, the will of voters is dominant in politics, and the will of taxpayers is dominant in economic aspects. The political parties should take this win as people’s will and awareness about the course correction and footsteps of time.”

Jhalanath Khanal, CPN (US) senior leader, mentioned while speaking at the lower house on Thursday that if they fail to proceed as directed by the Constitution, they will be left behind in history and many Balens will be born posing threat to the existence of the political parties.

Meanwhile, the winning independent candidates are being showered with praises and messages of congratulations from all sides. 

How long the winning independent candidates will be able to sustain their popularity will be determined by whether they will be able to perform as per their own promises and the expectations of the people of their respective constituencies. But for the moment, they have sent ripples through the established parties that their dominance can be challenged by an individual without affiliation with any political party if s/he has a clear vision to address the problems facing the people. 

Likewise, former government secretary Kishor Thapa, who contested the election from the Sajha Party for the post of Kathmandu mayor, garnered 18,496 votes. Darshana and Thapa together garnered  21 percent of the votes. Although both the candidates lost the elections, Kathmanduites gave a strong statement: We want alternatives in Kathmandu, we want people with honesty and vision to become the mayors of Kathmandu. 

Given the stronghold of the established and large political parties in Kathmandu, the election outcome was disappointing for the candidates like Darshana and Thapa. But it also made it clear that voters in Kathmandu are not happy with the ‘old and established’ parties which have repeatedly failed to live up to their promises and deliver on development. 

This time too, a young face is vying for the mayoral position in Kathmandu. But unlike in the last elections, Balen Shah, a rapper and a structural engineer, is contesting the elections independently with an election symbol ‘lauro’, a stick.

Balen stands out in many ways from his competitors. Unlike the candidates of major political parties, Balen Shah doesn’t criticize his opponents. Shah clearly presents his vision and a roadmap for the development of the Kathmandu Valley and has succeeded to become a symbol of hope in the eyes of many Kathmanduites.

A huge chunk of youths–especially those who want a change and are fed up with conventional politics and politicians–have expressed their support for Shah. Not only youths, some patrons of the old political parties are also speaking for Balen.

When Shah announced the candidacy, he was mocked by many, saying, “Not Kathmandu, but social media will vote for Shah.” But lately, after Shah’s media appearances, interviews, and coherent presentation of his vision, people have started to note and support him.

His rivals from major political parties appear to have taken Shah as a big challenge to their political ambitions.

Insulting remarks or discouraging comments, Shah stands undeterred, and the public support for him continues unabated.

As Shah’s popularity rose, the candidates from the already-established political parties started to make indecent comments against him. He has been targeted by cadres and leaders of established political parties, including CPN-UML and Nepali Congress.

Last week, UML’s mayor candidate Keshav Sthapit made indecent remarks against Shah, dubbing him as an ‘international thug’. Sthapit said that Shah was from Madhes and he was hiding his identity.  Sthapit was heavily criticized by the youths for saying so.

Insulting remarks or discouraging comments, Shah stands undeterred, and the public support for him continues unabated.  

In Nepal, it is not easy for someone with a non-political background to compete for a coveted public position like a mayor. Shah comes from an engineering and musical background but he is still gaining massive public support.

Ray of hope

The people who are fed up and frustrated with the old and conventional politics, repeated betrayal and lack of accountability by the political leaders are actively supporting Shah this time. 

Poor delivery, lack of development and bad governance by the leaders of the established political parties have frustrated people in Kathmandu, compelling them to seek alternatives. Balen Shah, in the meantime, has emerged as a symbol of hope for change, an icon for those who are deeply dissatisfied with established political parties to look up to in Kathmandu. 

Shah has succeeded in capturing the public sentiments this time. 

The most probable rationale behind the massive follower base and support for Shah is that his manifesto and vision outline clear ways and procedures for the development of Kathmandu. To be more precise, his manifesto is more focused on ‘how we do’ while other candidates are primarily focused on ‘what we do’. 

Which is probably why he has followers and supporters from different age groups–from the youths to college students to senior citizens in Kathmandu. 

Things to learn

Balen Shah may win or lose the battle for the post of the mayor of the capital city. But the amount of support that he has secured, or will secure, for himself will be a huge political capital for him to build on for the future. The experience that he gains from this election can be used for the future. His candidacy will also inspire and encourage many other independent youths to vie for the public position and try to make a difference in the way politics is done in Nepal.

Without doubt, he has emerged as the icon of hope. 

In the past, Ranju Darshana and Kishor Thapa created hype, and also hope. But this faded away in no time. During the early days, Bibeksheel Sajha had emerged as a ray of hope. It appeared as a credible alternative force, carrier of alternative agendas for reforms, development and good governance–the reason why it had found support from a large section of the youths across the country. Apparently, that craze has fizzled out now. 

Balen Shah’s manifesto is more focused on ‘how we do’ while other candidates are primarily focused on ‘what we do’. 

Shah has definitely something to learn from this episode at home.  Besides, the rise and success of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in India is also full of lessons for Nepali youths who want to come into politics.

With the landslide victory in Punjab assembly polls back in March, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by Arbind Kejriwal has emerged as an alternative force in Indian national politics. 

With extraordinary performance in New Delhi, AAP has changed the face of the Indian capital. The success has become possible and the dream has turned into a reality because the AAP and its leaders never gave up and kept on struggling, kept on putting their efforts, despite all odds, with solid vision and commitment for better politics. 

AAP’s success story is definitely something for Shah to learn from as well. 

On July 26 last year, party chair Rabindra Mishra proposed a referendum on secularism and abolition of federalism, riling up many of his party patrons. After that, the party witnessed internal conflicts, turmoil, and a split. 

It was originally founded on July 26, 2017, after the merger of the Sajha Party and Bibeksheel Nepal Dal. But it split on January 11, 2019. The two parties again merged on December 9, 2020.

In the 2017 elections, Ranju Darshana from the Bibeksheel Nepali vied for the mayor of Kathmandu. Looked up to as a candidate of hope by many, she secured third position garnering 23,439 votes. 

During the early days, Bibeksheel Sajha had emerged as a ray of hope. It had claimed to become the alternative force, carrier of alternative agendas for reforms, development and good governance–the reason why it had found support from a large section of the youths across the country. 

History shows that new parties are often formed around the idea of alternative politics but these parties soon fizzle out or become much less influential a few years down the line. 

Baburam Bhattarai–once the ideologue of the Maoists–while forming the Naya Shakti Party in 2016 also dubbed his party as the alternative political force. But the party disappeared into thin air in no time. In the 2017 elections, only Bhattarai did make it to the parliament. 

The party later merged with Upendra Yadav-led Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum in 2019. The Samajbadi Forum also later merged with Rastriya Janata Party Nepal in 2020 to form Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal. The party leaders boasted that it would be an alternative force. Now the party has split vertically, suffers factionalization and has not even been floating alternative agendas. 

The right-wing Rashtriya Prajatantrik Party also had sought to present itself as an alternative to major parties but after the split it is losing influence on the ground. However, Rajendra Lingden, the chair of RPP, following the split with Kamal Thapa (now the chair of RPP-Nepal)  is still talking about alternative politics.

So why do the political parties, which advocate for alternative politics, fail on their agendas? Why do they soon slacken? 

Critics say the ‘alternative political forces’ are turning out to be nominal alternatives, adopting the same old ideas and styles, following in the footsteps of the traditional political forces, and becoming person-centric rather than ideology-centric. Political analysts agree that the political parties who had claimed to be the alternative forces have miserably failed to become one. 

Why they fail 

Tula Narayan Shah, a political analyst, explains that alternative politics has been a significant contributor to all the major political changes in Nepal. Alternative politics was vibrant during the Panchayat regime, advocating the restoration of the multiparty democracy, he says. After that, Maoists and Madheshi parties emerged to champion the agendas of inclusion in the multiparty democracy. “These political forces are now major players in mainstream politics. They have been the mainstream players in the political landscape,” he said. 

According to Shah, alternative politics is the quest for alternatives as per the time and situation in the existing political system or party. 

Unfortunately, in terms of agendas, the contemporary advocates of alternative politics such as Bibeksheel Sajha and earlier the Naya Shakti party have been no different than the old and established political parties, he added. “The parties formed to carry on alternative politics can win the election only if they are able to lead a great movement, and defeat or change the existing system in some way,” said Shah. He argues that the parties that claim to advance alternative politics only boasted about the alternative politics in speech but failed to lead a great movement. “That’s why they have failed,” he said. 

According to experts, alternative political parties require alternative agendas and reform agendas and they need to be able to challenge the larger established parties which have been controlling the state affairs for a long time without accountability. Only then they can prove themselves. 

Dr Indra Adhikari, another political analyst, says that they have failed because they appear to follow more regressive than progressive agendas. “There is no newness in their ideas. They even appear to undermine the achievements of the political changes,” she said. According to her, in terms of character and culture, the alternative forces are no different from the old and established political parties. “Alternative politics should reflect in ideas, policies, programs, ideologies, characters and actions. But that is not the case here,” she said. 

All parties claim to fight against corruption. But they lack clarity in programs and plans. “The alternative political forces lack clear proposals, convincing and concrete structure, and plans,” she added. This is why, argues Adhikari, it is better to call them ‘new’ rather than ‘alternative’ political parties. 

According to experts, alternative political parties require alternative agendas and reform agendas and they need to be able to challenge the larger established parties which have been controlling the state affairs for a long time without accountability. Only then they can prove themselves. 

When they fail to execute change, the country suffers for the larger and established parties will not face any challenge even if they misuse political power and are involved in wrongdoings. As a result the status quo remains. “When the alternative forces fail, the old and established parties will not face challenges. And they would never feel the need to change their ways or do politics in a better way,” said Adhikari. “Which, in turn, sustains the status quo.”

Learn from AAP

With the landslide victory in Punjab assembly polls back in March, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by Arbind Kejriwal has emerged as an alternative force in Indian national politics. Kejriwal’s AAP and its good governance is a matter of envy for many in Nepal.

The party born out of the Anna Hajare-led 2011 anti-corruption movement has now proven that alternative politics actually works. AAP’s works and achievements in the development of Delhi are exemplary. 

With extraordinary performance in Delhi, AAP has changed the face of the Indian capital.

Regrettably, Nepali alternative forces do not seem to have learned from the success of AAP in India. However, political analysts say Nepal’s ‘alternative forces’ need to learn from the success story of AAP.  

AAP is in the global discourse now. The reason behind its success is the character, transparency, plans, good governance, visions for economic advancement, and fulfillment of the commitments with honesty, Adhikari explains. “The success of AAP has forced other political parties such as BJP and Congress and other regional parties to at least think about delivering good governance, prioritizing action over speeches,” said Adhikari. “AAP emerged after challenging the established parties in India and it became an alternative for the people across India. Nepal’s alternative forces must learn from AAP.”

Kejriwal saw where the problems lie and worked to address those problems. “But in the case of Nepal, the self-proclaimed flag bearers of alternative politics do not seem to know how to address the problems. Nor do they show the will to do so,” said Tula Narayan Shah. “They should know that coming up with a new name alone does not help. They have become an alternative force by deeds,” he added. 

‘Give us a chance’

Leaders of the ‘alternative political forces’ in Nepal, on the other hand, say it would be unfair to judge them for the members of alternative forces have not yet been given the opportunities to rise to power and deliver. 

Samikchya Baskota, a Bibeksheel Sajha leader and a candidate for mayor in Kathmandu, said that they have not yet reached a position where they can intervene and make a difference.  Bibeksheel Sajha has three lawmakers in the parliament who, Baskota believes, are doing their best in the role of opposition by taking the public issues to the parliament. “We have been actively engaged, as an alternative force, in the campaigns against corruption and to save the heritage, for example,” she said.

She admits that hopes are high among people from Bibeksheel Sajha. “But we are not in the position to deliver because we are not in power,” she said. “We are ‘outside, yet we are raising voices and fighting for change. We have never deviated from that commitment.” 

According to Baskota, alternative politics in Nepal is actually evolving, maturing, and emerging stronger slowly and gradually. 

For Baskota, the exemplary AAP also emerged by facing conflicts and factionalization. “AAP could deliver because people voted it to power,” said Baskota. “This is not the case with us here in Nepal.”

Baskota says that Bibeksheel Sajha is also determined to work in the similar spirit of AAP. And then when they rise to the position to deliver, they will spare no stone unturned, she says. “To be able to deliver like AAP, alternative forces should first be voted to power so that they can deliver,” she concluded. 

In a program to announce the launch of a new route to Mount Everest, the Initiation of the Tourism Revival Committee under the Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation informed that the new route will be opened this spring. 

A joint team from Nepal and France had explored an alternative route to the summit. According to the officials at the Ministry, the new route was first explored the last November. 

The fieldwork started in November 2021. A renowned French climber, Marc Batard, said that he and his team explored the new route in November. The plan, however, started in spring. Marc came to Nepal in spring and made an aerial survey of the proposed route.

Following the exploration, Nepal-France joint team conducted fieldwork including an aerial survey of the newly explored route. In the same month, a seven-member team also climbed the new route. The expedition was led by Marc Batard, a French mountaineer and Pasang Nuru Sherpa, an experienced mountaineer from Nepal.

The new route, according to officials and mountaineers, will help mountaineers to skip the passage through the Khumbu Icefall, the riskiest stretch of the current route to the world’s highest mountain. 

Talking to Nepal Live Today, Marc Batard, 70, shared that the quest of finding a new route was materialized last year. “New route is comparatively safer as climbers can attempt to scale the world’s highest peak escaping the treacherous and dangerous icefall section.”

According to him, the new route can prevent the deaths of aspiring climbers. “It is always heart-wrenching to hear about many deaths reported in the treacherous icefall section with a large number of climbers needing to cross the section multiple times during their expedition to Mt Everest or Mt Lhotse,” he said. “That’s why we initiated the exploration of the new and comparatively safe route above the base camp.” 

Last year, in a helicopter, he observed the region in quest of a new route, found one, put together a team to set up ropes, and now they are about to conclude the task.

“In the future, I am sure that many expeditors will want to climb by this route,” he said. The new route is rockier, there is a slim chance of avalanche, according to Batard. Once the new route gets a permit from the government, the mountain climbers will get a chance to choose between the icefall section or the new route which is 300 meters longer.

Batard first visited Nepal to expedite Pisang Peak, a famous trekking peak in the Annapurna region back in 1979. Mesmerized by Nepal’s beauty, he made it his destination repeatedly thereafter. “In my first visit to Nepal, its natural beauty hooked me the most, attracted me,” he said. 

Batard first made a solo winter 18-hour ascent of Dhaulagiri in December 1987 via the West Pillar to the summit and then down the normal route, the Northwest Ridge, to the Base Camp in April 1988. In preparation for Everest, Batard also scaled Cho Oyu in only 19 hours in early September 1988. He had also climbed his first eight-thousander, Gasherbrum II in Pakistan, already in 1975, opening a new route via the South Ridge.

Marc said he wants to become the oldest person to climb Everest without oxygen.

In 2011, former Foreign Minister Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya tried to become the oldest person to climb Everest with oxygen. Unfortunately, the 81-year-old politician died due to acute mountain sickness.

Four years back, the Supreme Court had issued a directive order to the government for ensuring voting rights for Nepalis living abroad but it has not been implemented yet. The Supreme Court, in 2018, issued a directive order stating that it was the duty of the government to enable every citizen living in the country or abroad to vote in elections. 

The SC ordered to make provisions considering the Nepalis living abroad but have not yet renounced their Nepali citizenship and not taken the citizenship of other countries as eligible for ‘external voting’.

No progress has been made in this regard as of now.  

Even though leaders of the political parties appear to advocate for the voting rights of the Nepalis abroad now and again, they have actually failed to take the issue to the implementation level. Some political parties have repeated the commitment that they will soon bring a law to allow the Nepalis residing abroad to cast votes in the upcoming elections. But in practice, they themselves seem to be denying this right to the Nepalis living abroad by defying the Supreme Court’s directive order or by delaying its implementation. 

Addressing the Non-Resident Nepali Association (NRNA)’s unity program a week ago, CPN-Maoist Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) said that the preparations are ongoing to ensure the participation of Nepalis residing abroad in the upcoming elections. If it is not possible in the local elections, it will be made possible for the upcoming federal and provincial elections, he added. 

In the program recently organized by Nepal Policy Institute (NPI), leaders had expressed their views regarding the voting rights of the Nepalis living abroad. 

Prakash Sharan Mahat, Nepali Congress spokesperson, indicated that it will be impossible to implement the Supreme Court’s order. “It may not be possible in the upcoming local elections nor in the upcoming parliamentary elections,” he said adding “it would be a great achievement if we succeeded to make it possible in the coming five years.” 

Even though the Supreme Court issued a directive order in 2018, neither any laws have been formulated nor concrete actions taken by political parties. 

Upendra Yadav, chair of Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal (JSPN), however, seems hopeful. Yadav said that it would have been better if we had included the provision of voting rights to Nepalis abroad in the constitution itself, but we can still provide them the voting rights by making laws. “There are many ways. E-voting could be an effective solution. The main thing is we must bring laws,” he added.

Pradip Gyawali, deputy general secretary of CPN-UML informed that the Election Commission is drafting a law that will reach the parliament via ministry.

Experts, for their part, are not confident that suffrage for Nepalis abroad is possible anytime soon given the reluctance of the political mechanism, the practical complications, and the lack of laws.  

Bhojraj Pokharel, the former Chief Election Commissioner, said that ensuring voting rights to the Nepalis living abroad in the upcoming elections is only a sweet imagination. “Neither the laws have been made, nor the logistical issues evaluated. Leaders are not saying no, but they are not taking any action,” he added. “The main matter is until and unless online voting is managed, out-of-the-country voting will be too difficult and will only remain a mere imagination.”

Nepal Live Today tried to reach the Election Commission officials to take their views regarding the progress in ensuring the voting rights of Nepalis abroad but to no avail.

By keeping the condition of ‘based on necessities and situations’ Nepali Congress has kept the alliance prospects open. That means it is yet to be confirmed in which municipalities, rural municipalities, sub-metropolitan cities and metropolitans will the electoral alliance be actually formed. 

Moreover, on Thursday, the ruling coalition officially decided to form electoral alliances based on a ‘modality’ to be prepared after monitoring the conditions on the ground. A committee comprising three levels will be formed for the purpose. 

But calculations are being made about the potential winners, and also the losers. Continuity or discontinuity of the alliance in the local polls and afterward is going to have a significant impact on the outcomes of provincial and federal parliament elections as well. 

Meanwhile, all eyes are on the possible outcomes in metropolitan cities of the country. 

Out of total 753 local governments, six are the metropolitans: Kathmandu, Pokhara, Biratnagar, Chitwan, Birgunj, and Lalitpur. Considered the supreme local units, the local election fever is most apparent in the metropolitans. 

In the 2017 local elections, two Mayors and five deputy mayors were elected from Nepali Congress, two mayors and a deputy mayor from CPN-UML, and a mayor each from the CPN-Maoist center and Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal (JSPN). But in five years, Nepali political landscape has changed with a lot of ups and downs.

So who will emerge victorious in these metropolitan cities? Here are some possible scenarios. 

Prospects in Kathmandu 

In the 2017 local elections, Bidya Sundar Shakya from CPN-UML had bagged the mayor’s post in Kathmandu with 64,913 votes in hand while his closest competitor had garnered 45,269 votes. Similarly, Bibeksheel Nepali’s Ranju Darshana and Bibeksheel Sajha’s Kishor Thapa had gotten 23,439 and 18,496 votes respectively. Sarwottam Dangol from CPN-Maoist Center had garnered 7,906 votes.

CPN (Unified Socialist) is staking a claim in Kathmandu this time. However, even the formation of an electoral alliance will not guarantee victory for the CPN-US or even the NC. CPN-UML had won the earlier election with a margin of around twenty thousand votes. Given this, Kathmandu may witness a neck and neck competition in the upcoming elections. Also, no other party of the current coalition had won a major share of votes in 2017. 

Furthermore, Bibeksheel Sajha Nepal is a divided house. It may not be able to retain the number of votes it had secured back in 2017. Bibeksheel can hope for a better outcome only if it can secure the votes garnered by both Darshana and Thapa in the earlier election into its fold. 

For the deputy mayor’s post, Hari Prabha Khadgi from NC had won with 58,952 votes against 34,854 votes of RPP’s Rajaram Shrestha supported by CPN-UML. So there is a higher chance that NC will prevail in the deputy mayor’s post with or without the alliance.  

UML’s test in Pokhara

In the 2017 local elections, Man Bahadur GC from CPN-UML had won the mayor’s post with 60,118 votes against 46,416 votes of his rival Ramji Kunwar from NC. CPN-Maoist had supported NC in the mayor’s election. The vote margin of CPN UML and NC was 13,702. A higher chance for CPN UML’s triumph could be predicted in this metropolitan as there was a significant votes margin against the team of the NC and Maoists. However, that also, in some way, depends on the intensity of the effects of the split in the CPN-UML. 

Similarly, current deputy mayor Manju Gurung from CPN-UML had won with 56,448 votes while her closest rival Saraswati Gurung from NC had garnered 44,338 votes. We can expect tough competition as NC had garnered the votes independently and the formation of an electoral alliance this time may help the party win. 

NC’s chance in Biratnagar 

In the previous local election, Bhim Parajuli from NC had won the mayor’s post garnering 23,031 votes while his closest rival Binod Prasad Dhakal from CPN-UML got 17,321 votes. If this difference remains intact, there is a higher chance for NC to win the mayor’s post with or without the alliance in the upcoming elections. 

Similarly, Indira Karki from NC won the deputy mayor’s post with 20,146 votes against 11,524 votes of Namita Neupane from the CPN-Maoist Center. So, NC may prevail in the deputy mayor with or without the alliance. Suchi Chaudhari from Nepal Loktantrik Forum supported by CPN-UML came third with 10,536 votes. 

Tough race in Lalitpur

Chiri Babu Maharjan from NC had garnered 24,642 votes to win for the mayor in 2017 elections against 24,316 votes garnered by Hari Krishna Byanjankar from CPN-UML. The vote margin was only 326 votes. CPN-Maoist came third with 10,661 votes. So, forming an alliance will provide NC with a victory and if it competes without an alliance, the result will depend on the intensity of the effect of the split in the CPN-UML. Yet the competition will be tough. For CPN-UML, Lalitpur is going to be a tough battle this time. 

In the post of the deputy mayor, Gita Satyal from NC garnered 19,819 votes to bag a win against her close rival from Sajha Party Shova Shakya who garnered 14,240 votes. CPN-UML had supported RPP in the election. The candidates for deputy mayor from RPP Babu Kaji Thapa garnered 10,547 votes. So, there is a higher chance of victory for the Nepali Congress with or without an alliance. 

Alliance in Bharatpur

In the Bharatpur metropolitan city, CPN-Maoist Center and Nepali Congress had formed an alliance in the earlier election. Renu Dahal from CPN-Maoist Center had won the mayor’s post with 43,127 votes while her closest rival CPN-UML’s Devi Prasad Gyawali had garnered 42,924 votes. The competition was tough with only a slim margin of votes between the winner and the loser. 

As the number of votes of Renu Dahal was the sum of the votes from NC and the CPN-Maoist Center, only a proper electoral alliance is going to give competition to the CPN-UML. If the ruling coalition does not continue, there is a chance for the CPN-UML to win as Maoist Center alone will not be able to win the election in the city. 

For the deputy mayor’s post, Parvati Shah from NC had gotten 47,197 votes while her closest rival from CPN-UML Divya Sharma garnered 39,525 votes. Whether or not the electoral alliance is formed between the current ruling parties, the competition is going to be tough in Bharatpur. 

Case of Birgunj

In the 2017 elections, Vijay Sarawagi from the then Sanghiya Democratic Forum had won the mayor’s post with 19,393 votes against 19,197 votes garnered by Ajaya Dwivedi from Nepali Congress. Sarawagi has now joined the CPN-UML. Nepali Congress also has a stronghold in the region and the entry of Sarawagi into the CPN-UML will impact the JSPN. LSP, the breakaway faction of JSPN is also in competition in some way but the votes will be divided. 

Shanti Karki from NC had won the deputy mayor’s post with 19,607 votes against the 18,530 votes of Pinky Yadav from Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum. The then Rastriya Janata Party candidate had garnered 10,663 votes. JSPN and LSP both will try to form an alliance with Nepali Congress for the election to secure their hold in Birgunj. If they vie independently, there might be tough competition between JSPN, LSP and NC. 

After the constitution promulgation, which realized the long-held national aspirations of framing the country’s statute by people’s representatives, the local election was held as the most significant step towards reaching out to the people at their homes, addressing their development and governance aspirations.

Local governments were given a wide range of powers by the constitution. Laws were formulated to define the powers and functions of the local governments. Chapter 3 of the Local Government Operation Act, for example,  has included the work, duty, and rights of the rural municipalities and municipalities. Annex-8 of the Constitution of Nepal includes the sole rights of the local governments. 

Unkept promises 

If the local elections had revived the hopes of the general people, the local governments were expected to address the local problems. Hopes were high and doubt little, partly because the candidates to contest the elections for the local governments made hordes of promises to the electorates: They came out with manifestoes promising to do what no governments in the past had been able to perform.

Five years down the line, as the second local elections are approaching, the promises they made five years ago have proved to be mere rhetoric.  They appear to be deceptive tricks to appeal to the emotions of the electorates. The following three examples serve as the cases in point. 

Man Bahadur GC from CPN-UML won the election for the post of Mayor of the Pokhara Metropolitan City with an attractive manifesto and promising development plans. The main plan was to develop Pokhara into a ‘smart city’ on which the local government has fully failed. Even many general plans connected to people’s livelihood have not been yet implemented. 

Mayor of Bharatpur Metropolitan City Renu Dahal had included as many as nine long-term development plans when she won the election. Her promises included building ring roads and link roads, construction of three concrete bridges over the Narayani River, addressing the problems of the landless squatters among others. If accomplished, these projects could change the face of the Bharatpur Metropolitan City. 

Today, her development plans look as if they never existed. 

Kathmandu Metropolitan City is no exception. 

During the local elections five years back, Bidhya Sundar Shakya sold the dreams of metro and monorails to the residents of Kathmandu Valley. Five years down the line, Shakya appears to be one of the least performing mayors of the country.  Forget mono and metro rails, Shakya has not been able to keep the Kathmandu Valley clean. Garbage heaps lie uncollected in the streets of Kathmandu, now and then. 

The aforementioned examples represent the cases of low-performing and underperforming local governments. 

The local governments are the people’s governments in the real sense but most of them have failed to live up to people’s expectations, nor have they been able to implement their own development plans. 

Right after they won the elections the people’s representatives should have focused on their primary duty–to implement the development plans, fulfill their promises and address the aspirations of people. But that did not happen. 

According to experts, rural municipalities and smaller cities have performed relatively better than metropolitans and big cities.    

Local governments could be the champion of development at the local levels. But, the ineffectiveness of the local representatives, corruption, over politicization, and lack of transparency in the local levels have been stark. People are expressing their dissents against the incompetency of the local governments and the betrayal they experienced from their own representatives.  

Local governments failed to spend the budget. Available reports and data show that a number of local governments have failed in the budget expenditure every fiscal year. 

Nepal has 753 local governments through which people can participate in governance directly as people in need can reach out to the local governments directly.

Why they failed?

According to experts, rural municipalities and smaller cities have performed relatively better than metropolitans and big cities.    Krishna Prasad Sapkota, a local governance expert, argues that metropolitans and big cities comparatively lag behind local governments of smaller municipalities and rural municipalities in performance. “One-third of the municipalities and rural municipalities have done good, one-third performed medium, and the other one-third has performed poorly,” said Sapkota. “Ten percent of them have completely failed.”

But why?

Sapkota attributes ineffectiveness of the people’s representatives, lack of proper coordination between the representatives and bureaucracy, lack of officials in the local levels, lack of working environment, the politicization of development works, and the very structures of the local governments (cases where a majority of representatives represent a certain party rest of them from the rival party and vice-versa) and the authoritarian tendency of the elected representatives as the major reasons behind low performance or failure of the local governments. 

Last week, CPN-Maoist Center leader Dev Gurung said the ruling coalition will continue until the election unless ‘some political accident does not happen.’ 

Chairman of CPN-US Madhav Kumar Nepal and CPN-Maoist Center Pushpa Kamal Dahal (Prachanda) appear confident about the longevity of the coalition; at least until the local elections. While addressing the Central Committee meeting of the party which began on Friday, Maoist chair Prachanda claimed that the incumbent alliance will continue till the election. Nepal, on the other hand, has time and again been claiming the alliance in the government will turn into an electoral alliance. 

However, the meeting of the coalition parties–Nepali Congress, CPN (Unified Socialist), CPN-Maoist Center and Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal (JSPN)–last week concluded the fate of the ruling alliance will be decided after all of them discuss the issue individually within their respective parties. 

Leaders of the Nepal Congress, for their part, are not sure yet. 

Speaking with journalists on March 9 in a press meet conducted at the party’s central office, top leaders of Nepali Congress said that no formal decisions have been made as yet by the party regarding the continuity of the coalition into an election alliance. 

Nepali Congress announced its election campaign on Wednesday. 

“No decisions have been made yet regarding the electoral alliance. We will act in a way that ensures our victory in the majority of places,” said Prakash Sharan Mahat, who is the spokesperson of the Nepali Congress. 

Mahat further added that there is no need for discussions about the prospect of the alliance at present as the party has decided to focus on the election campaign for now. 

Nepali political arithmetics are changing with the political ups and downs the country is facing.

Party vice-president Purna Bahadur Khadka echoed Mahat. He claimed that the party is clear and will conduct the first round of election campaigns separately. “After that, the party will discuss the alliance issue and decide about the further move,” he said. 

Individual leaders may have personal opinions but Nepali Congress will put this issue on hold for now, according to him. 

At present there are a total of 753 local governments including six metropolitans, 11 sub-metropolitans, 276 municipalities and 460 rural municipalities. In the 2017 local elections, out of 1506 positions in the local governments, CPN-UML had won 625, NC 489 and CPN-Maoist 217 positions. 

Nepali political arithmetics are changing with the political ups and downs the country is facing. The largest political party CPN-UML is out of the government while other parties are together in the government. 

After the Madhav Kumar Nepal faction broke away, UML’s stronghold in the local levels has comparatively diminished. Maoist Center is weak at the local level while CPN-US is yet to build organizations at the local level. That’s why these two parties are currently strong advocates for the continuity of the alliance. 

Nepali Congress is comparatively in a comfortable position. But Deuba is still not clear whether to continue the alliance until the local elections despite the continuous voices from his party leaders that the party can win alone. Deuba has directed party’s leaders and cadres not to speak against the coalition parties.

Whether the coalition will convert into an election alliance is going to impact the local polls and their outcomes as well. 

Biplav and his colleagues are vehement opponents of the MCC deal have been launching movements to stall the $500 million American grant project.

In the past couple of days, Netra Bikram Chand alias has caught up with prominent leaders–Narayan Kaji Shrestha of CPN-Maoist Center, Bhim Rawal of CPN-UML and Narayan Man Bijukchhe of Nepal Workers Peasant Party. 

A point to be noted is that the aforementioned leaders are currently the dissident factions in their respective parties and have strongly opposed the ratification of the MCC compact. 

In the meeting with Rawal, Biplav proposed that all the patriots should be in one place and form a front for national sovereignty. Similarly, in the meeting with Shrestha, Biplav proposed to move forward in collaboration, by forming a front of revolutionary forces. 

After the meeting with Rawal, a leader of Biplav-led Nepal Communist Party Khadga Bahadur Biswokarma (Prakanda) wrote on social media: “Patriots, nationalists and pro-sovereignty forces, let’s get united and polarized.”

The Biplav-led party leaders are actively meeting political leaders who were against MCC. His party had announced strikes and street protests across the country right after the MCC Compact was tabled for ratification. What does it signify? What is the party up to? 

A leader of the party, Dharmendra Bastola, said that the party is putting its efforts to move forward their struggle for scrapping the MCC compact in collaboration with the leaders who are against the compact. “We are engaged in regular political meetings to create public opinion and pressure, and for collaboration with leaders who are strongly in opposition of the Compact,” he said. 

When asked whether it’s an election agenda or strategy or an effort to form an electoral alliance, Bastola replied that regarding the election agenda or strategy, the upcoming meeting of the central committee will decide. “The recent meetings are not related to elections,” he added.

Once an outlawed entity, Biplav’s party entered peaceful politics after the KP Oli government and the party on March 4, 2021, signed a three-point peace deal. According to the agreement, the government had agreed to lift the ban imposed on the group, release cadres and leaders and withdraw cases filed against them. However, the agreement has not been implemented fully yet.

History and ideology of Biplav-led CPN 

The party was formed on November 24, 2014, following a split from the Communist Party of Nepal (Revolutionary Maoist) led by Mohan Vaidya (Kiran). Soon after that the party got engaged in an armed struggle against the government. 

In 2019, KP Oli’s government declared the CPN led by Biplav as a criminal outfit over the alleged involvement in extortion, bombings and killings of the civilians. 

The party’s aim is to take the human being to the highest peak of Scientific Socialism and Communism, upholds applies and develops Marxism-Leninism-Maoism by adopting the scientific theory of dialectical materialism propounded and developed by Marx, Lenin and Mao, gives leadership to the desire and destination of emancipation of the Nepalese people, the people of the world, the workers and oppressed masses of people, aims at to establish New Democracy and Scientific Socialism of the Nepalese proletariat, workers, nationalist, progressive democratic people, commits to bring the dreams of the martyrs disappeared fighters, injured and disabled into being, upholds the dialectics of the internationalism and national questions.

The party has now entered into peaceful politics. And, how will it engage in the upcoming general election is interesting, as hardcore and radical communist leader who led an underground outfit has entered mainstream politics and is regularly engaged in political meetings recently.