Impending political scenario

The Himalayan Times

9 December 2022

Impending political scenario

Nepal conducted federal and provincial elections on November 20. Around 61 per cent of the people cast their votes as per the Election Commission (EC), which is six per cent less than presence in the local elections held earlier in May this year. With the unnatural five-party alliances, with hardly any ideological convergence and common minimum agenda led by the Nepali Congress (NC), this election in the country was a curious political case for the people. As the election results are now published, it appears distinctly that Nepal will have a hung parliament, which might be unfortunate for the people who were expecting to see a political stability in the country. The voting trend shows that the people are gradually changing their mind-set about the traditional political force through their ballots.EARN MONEY ONLINE

The November 20 polls witnessed a wave of youngsters challenging the hegemony of the old guard of Nepali politics. Many of them secured substantial votes, with some of them even competing against the senior leaders in their long-held constituencies. Those elected from the Ratriya Swotantra Party (RSP) and the other independent candidates with different professional backgrounds, should, however, have a clear point of view on where they stand on various national issues in the House of Representatives (HoR). These older politicians will definitely try to either lure them towards their parties or discourage them. They might even try to split them. It remains to be seen whether these elected young leaders from RSP and independent candidates and even from Janta Party will fulfil their promises.

A weak coalition government comprising of political parties having different political ideologies and priorities will definitely have disadvantages in effectively leading the nation, creating more political, social and economic problems and inviting political instability. This situation might even call for a mid-term election, which can be financially disastrous for the nation which is facing severe economic hardship. The first two years of the new coalition government, which cannot be challenged in the parliament as per the constitution, will be a crucial period for it to prove its usefulness.

Rai Biren Bangdel

Maharajgunj