Lessons to political forces

 The Himalayan Times

26 May 2022

Lessons to political forces

The recently concluded local elections were full of surprises, especially the waves of individual independent candidates leading the polls in various municipalities. Among the many, the hotspot of this movement was Kathmandu, where Balendra Shah, who is known to many as just Balen, a notable rapper and professionally a structural engineer, was contesting for the mayoral seat. Initially, his candidacy for the position was seen as a mere joke, looking at him contesting against UML’s well known candidate and former mayor Keshav sthapit or Srijana Singh, a common candidate of the five-party alliance. People had initially thought Balen’s victory would be a fluke. He is now leading the race with a huge margin and is almost sure to be elected as Kathmandu’s Mayor. 

The electoral victory of these independent candidates over the major political parties’ candidates is now the talk of the town, raising various questions: Is this an indication of voters’ dis-satisfaction with the political system and the political performances of senior leaders of major political parties? Or, is this a challenge to the existing voting system? Does this indicate an end to traditional ethnic bloc voting because of the poor performance of the elected candidates? Other effects of independent candidates’ win in other parts of the nation can be seen in the upcoming provincial and federal elections.

With Balens’ victory, it really should matter to the major political parties in the days to come, considering the composition of Kathmandu based voters who seem to be mostly the young generation of heterogeneous groups or communities. Balen has been successful, in one way or the other, in giving a message: a message that seems to be heard wide and clear throughout the countries. The message was simple: “we had enough” for which we are not thinking to continue the same old and lethargic political shows. It remains to be seen whether this message will change the political dynamics of the country in the days to come. However, it can be said that Balen’s outstanding performance can, in real sense, be the beginning of a democratic evolution in the political history of Nepal.

Rai Biren Bangdel

Maharajgunj