There is less than two years to go till elections to all three levels of government, and Nepal’s major political parties are gearing up to engage voters. The governing UML has launched its ‘Mission 2084’ campaign, but the party is being rocked by former president Bidhya Devi Bhandari's effort to join the electoral fray. The UML’s coalition partner, the Nepali Congress (NC) is wracked by rival contenders arguing over whether to hold its general convention before or after the next polls.&nbsp; The opposition Maoist Centre is on a nationwide grassroots tour to rebuild its support base after it was ousted from the UML-Maoist coalition last year. The leaders of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) in a strategic move are mobilising the diaspora to vote for the party symbol, bell, or influence family members back home.&nbsp; RSP lawmaker Sumana Shrestha recently addressed Nepalis living overseas, urging them to participate in the next election.&nbsp; ‘Save your time off, save your money, and come back home in 2027 — either to run for one of the 36,000 elected positions, or support those who are running for office,’ Shrestha said. ‘But whatever the case, you must come back to vote. Let’s ring the bell in 2027.’ Overseas Nepalis emerged as an important bloc during the 2022 election because they convinced families back home to vote for new independent candidates, not established party nominees. RSP hopes to cash in on this anti-incumbent protest vote again.&nbsp; The census put the country’s absentee population at 2.1 million, but experts say it is at least double that. Most are in the 20-35 age group, and disillusioned with Nepal’s serial leaders. Social media platforms allow them to be apprised of goings-on in Nepal, which means those living and working overseas are actively engaged in politics back home. This week, the judiciary’s judgement implementation directorate, in response to an application from lawyers associated with the RSP, sent a reminder to the Election Commission to act on the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling to guarantee Nepalis overseas their constitutional right to vote.&nbsp; The Election Commission itself in 2023 registered the Bill to Amend and Consolidate the Election Law proposing various amendments including out of country voting, but the Bill has been idling at the Home Ministry for two years because of lack of support from the three main parties. “The state and the Election Commission have been lethargic in taking action to ensure rights for out of country voting,” former Chief Election Commissioner Bhoj Raj Pokharel told us. Ensuring out of country voting rights is not a new idea. During the 1980 referendum on the Panchayat system, some embassy staff and officials abroad were allowed to vote. And the Election Commission floated the idea in 2008, but that did not go anywhere.&nbsp; It is not just opposition from mainstream parties that has prevented voting by mail. There are also legal, financial, and technical challenges. “In principle, we expect that our political leadership wants as many people as possible to exercise their franchise and participate in the political process,” says Radhika Regmi Pokharel of The International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES).&nbsp; But, she adds, “In reality, if the leadership thinks absentee voting might jeopardise their chances of winning, they will be less keen on carrying out electoral reforms.” Nepali students, migrant workers, and people holding long-term residency permits are scattered across the world. It will be a challenge to set up voting booths at multiple points beyond embassies and consulates during elections, especially without bilateral agreements in place to designate spaces for polls.&nbsp; Nepal’s mixed first-past-the-post (FPTP) and Proportional Representation (PR) electoral system also means that conducting elections at a Nepali Embassy for example in Qatar where there are hundreds of thousands of Nepalis will be complicated, Pokharel explains. There are Nepalis from multiple constituencies in a host country, and FPTP ballots are different for each constituency, while PR voting only requires a single ballot.&nbsp; “We can at least conduct PR elections overseas, but that does not ensure complete electoral justice,” adds Pokharel. “The problem lies in implementing electoral laws in a way that ensures overseas voters can exercise their franchise.”&nbsp; Experts say some pilot schemes for overseas voters can be started in select embassies where feasible.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025072411078_31edf240cc052692f0ba33d364bbf8981a584a4ab590691cf1b1388a646cd49c.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="2025072411078_31edf240cc052692f0ba33d364bbf8981a584a4ab590691cf1b1388a646cd49c" data-rendition-name="original" width="900" height="592" loading="lazy" alt="Nepalis overseas"> </figure>  “Even if we are not ready, the least we can do is to make sure that Nepalis abroad, in particular overseas migrant workers, are registered to vote, be it through Nepali embassies of the countries they are based in, or when they leave Kathmandu airport, or at points along the Nepal-India border,” says Gopal Krishna Siwakoti at the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL). Whether or not they are able to vote, overseas Nepalis will nonetheless be influential in upcoming elections. “Nepali diaspora, especially those who are settled permanently abroad will influence voters here in Nepal to some extent even if they are loyal to a particular party,” adds Siwakoti. But it is not about guaranteeing voting rights just for those abroad, all eligible voters within Nepal must also be allowed to vote in the place of their domicile and not make a journey back to their districts.&nbsp; “There is a lot of talk about out of country voting, but how about in country voting?” asks Regmi. &nbsp; At present, Nepalis cannot vote from their current place of residence. Only election officials and security personnel can cast at least their PR ballots from where they are stationed.&nbsp; Internal migration and inability to leave work means many cannot travel to their constituencies for election day. Some candidates therefore spend money to bus voters to their constituencies to vote.&nbsp; While Nepalis have historically shown great enthusiasm at election time, the need to travel to vote combined with increasing apathy towards traditional parties, means turnout declined from 78% in 2017 to 62% in 2022. Early voting, mail-in ballots, fixed election dates, and facilitating electronic voting would make it easier for people both within and outside the country to vote. But mail-in voting will depend on the postal system, which is not reliable, and online voting may also have security challenges, both domestic and geopolitical.&nbsp; Most of all, facilitating all these different methods of voting will require significant costs. “Ultimately, democracy does not come cheap, and we have to invest in it,” says Regmi.&nbsp; Meanwhile, the governing UML-NC coalition has been debating constitutional amendments to reform the mixed election mechanism, an agenda they had hinged their partnership on when they formed their alliance last year.&nbsp; Nepal’s political leadership has long maintained that the country’s mixed electoral system does not allow for one party to form a majority, only coalition governments, which has made governance and politics in Nepal unstable.&nbsp; Coalition leaders say they want to amend the Constitution to ensure political stability by ensuring members of the House of Representatives are elected through the FPTP system, and members of the National Assembly are chosen through the PR method.&nbsp; However, experts say it is not so much the electoral system but governance and political leadership that are responsible for high government turnover and instability. They point to countries like Japan, Switzerland, and Germany which have stable politics despite having a similar mixed electoral scheme.&nbsp; Inclusive, Diverse “Every electoral system has its unique characteristic, there is no one perfect system," says Pokharel. “An electoral system does not &nbsp;guarantee stability, that is up to the drivers of our state mechanism.” &nbsp; The proposed amendments risk rolling back the quotas and reservation that currently guarantee the representation of women and Nepalis from underserved communities in national politics. “FPTP has become costly, and women and minority communities simply do not have the resources and network to compete with other candidates in more privileged positions,” says Regmi. “Currently proposed amendments will deal a heavy blow to inclusivity and diversity in governance.”&nbsp; Promises of electoral reforms have not materialised into concrete plans of action. And with just two years to go for 2027, it will be difficult to organise out of country voting or modify the mixed electoral system — even if Parliament passes relevant laws.&nbsp; “It is too late now to successfully set up the relevant infrastructure and systems overseas in time for 2027,” says Regmi. Pokharel concurs: “They need a two-third majority in Parliament to successfully amend the Constitution. Barring a miracle, I don’t see a possibility of election reform before 2027.” &nbsp;

Shristi Karki

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Looking ahead to Nepal’s 2027 elections

The debate about who is less accountable to the public: politicians or bureaucrats is as old as Nepal’s democracy itself.
Some blame politicians for being beholden to the businessmen who finance their electoral campaigns, and are forced to return the favour with contracts and kickbacks when in power.&nbsp;
Others say it is civil servants who are neither civil nor servants, and know the inner workings of the system to exploit loopholes – they then teach ministers, MPs, mayors, or ward chairs which juicy projects can be squeezed. And everyone gets their share.
In reality, it is probably not a case of either, or. Both have their hands deep in the honey pot. Corruption is now such a given that yet another exposé in the mainstream press, like the latest visit-visa scam, does not raise eyebrows anymore.
We may have to edit Lord Acton’s famous quote to say that in Nepal we do not even need absolute power to corrupt absolutely. The ruling cartel has divvied up the spoils, so that no one ever faces charges. The three parties all know about the skeletons rattling in each other’s closets, and they cancel each other out.
Politicians and bureaucrats get all the blame for taking bribes, but what of the givers of bribes? In this crony capitalism, businesses invariably need political patrons in an elaborate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-only-growth-industry-private-sector-corruption" target="_blank">national network of give-and-take</a>.
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepals-only-growth-industry-private-sector-corruption" target="_blank">Politicians and businesses work hand-in-glove</a> so that conflict of interest in contracts, insider trading, cartelling, and non-performing assets of banks become the norm. Our survey after the 2017 local election showed that out of the 753 newly-elected local government chairs, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/elected-contractors" target="_blank">nearly 300 were contractors</a> involved in sand-mining, quarrying, or transportation syndicates.
Nepal’s tycoons have discovered that instead of donating to election war chests of politicians, it is a much surer return on investment to spend the money to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-business-of-politics-in-nepal" target="_blank">become legislators and politicians themselves</a>.
In democracies, there are checks and balances to control corruption when it becomes endemic. The Nepal Police and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are supposed to do the detective work without political interference. The courts are required to be independent in dispensing justice and punishing crooks.
But the less said about the judiciary the better. A writ petition in the Supreme Court last week accused our sister magazine <a href="https://www.himalkhabar.com/" target="_blank">HimalKhabar</a> of contempt of court for two stories: one about how high courts have been overturning a majority of verdicts of district courts in cases of rape, and another about the Biratnagar High Court clearing a self-proclaimed holy man, Krishna Bahadur Giri, of rape despite police presenting physical evidence.
The doctrine of the separation of powers stipulates that it is when the other three pillars in a democracy are compromised that the role of the free press becomes even more vital. The world over, as soon as populist autocrats are elected to the executive, their first order of business is to co-opt the legislature and the judiciary. Then they buy off, intimidate, or neutralise the media with Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP).
Nepal’s officialdom seems to be taking midnight Zoom lessons from other despots on how to gag the media. Last month, popular talk show host Dil Bhushan Pathak was served an arrest warrant by the Kathmandu District Court for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-CntsnTrtG8" target="_blank">a YouTube explainer</a> about the alleged involvement of the son of Foreign Minister Arzu Deuba Rana in a reported purchase of Kathmandu’s Hilton Hotel.
The Lalitpur District Court ruled that Pathak could not be arrested without fair trial, but this week the Kathmandu District Court filed another case against the journalist based on a complaint by the Cyber Bureau, and put him on a fugitive list.&nbsp;
Without going into the veracity of Pathak’s explainer, it is deeply problematic that the Electronic Transaction Act has been invoked – proof that politicians are getting the courts and investigating agencies to make an example of a high profile journalist.&nbsp;
The intention is to silence media investigations into the fake refugee scandal in which the main partner in the ruling coalition is implicated, and in which one of its former home ministers was jailed last year.
The Kathmandu High Court has been mysteriously active in targeting journalists these days. <a href="https://bizmandu.com/" target="_blank">Bizmandu</a> and <a href="https://nepalkhabar.com/" target="_blank">Nepalkhabar</a> were served a notice last month <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/no-freedom-after-expression-y4inku06" target="_blank">to withdraw a story they did</a> on the Chair of the <a href="https://www.sebon.gov.np/" target="_blank">Security and Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON</a>) Santosh Narayan Shrestha allegedly demanding kickbacks from hydropower investors.&nbsp;
Incredibly, the court even asked the two portals not to report on the subject anymore – a ruling so absurd that the Patan High Court overturned it a week later.&nbsp;
The allegations against Shrestha were made in a public meeting of the <a href="https://www.ippan.org.np/members/3060/bungal-hydro-ltd" target="_blank">Independent Power Producers Association of Nepal (IPPAN)</a>, and MPs demanded a <a href="https://myrepublica.nagariknetwork.com/news/parliament-demands-probe-into-sebon-chairman-over-alleged-commission-demand-40-32.html" target="_blank">Parliament inquiry</a> into the regulator. <a href="https://www.himalkhabar.com/144523/santosh-narayan-shrestha" target="_blank">HimalKhabar</a> reported this week that while Shrestha was reportedly demanding commissions from private investors for IPOs, he cleared primary share sales in Bajhang’s 10.75MW <a href="https://www.ippan.org.np/members/3060/bungal-hydro-ltd" target="_blank">Bungal Hydro</a> in which his family members have investments, company records show.
And then just on Monday, bureaucrats hoodwinked MPs by deleting references in a bill requiring a two-year ‘cooling off’ period under which retiring civil servants could be barred from holding constitutional positions for two years.
The contest for who is more corrupt: bureauacrats, politicians, or the private sector is on.
Kunda Dixit

SLAPPing Democracy

The recent removal of Kulman Ghising a few months before his tenure heading the National Electricity Authority (NEA) ended made headlines. Hitendra Dev Shakya, whose previous tenure ended amid similar behind-the-scenes politics that <a href="https://en.setopati.com/political/157021">never saw a final court verdict</a>, was put back in charge.&nbsp;
For many, Ghising was the architect of the end of 18-hour-a-day power cuts till a decade ago. His abrupt removal sparked outrage across the public sphere, and the political spectrum.
Leadership at the NEA has never been just about performance, it has long been entangled in political proximity, not merit. The agency is more than a power utility, it is more about control of budgets, contracts, and narratives.
As long as the lights stay on, many Nepalis will willingly overlook the messy compromises that greases the system. Appointments, removals, court cases, and backroom political bargain are the norm. Sometimes like with Ghising, a figure emerges as a public hero, sometimes, they do not.
A decade after routine load-shedding ended, political leaders still scramble to claim credit, over what should fundamentally be just the day-to-day work. The sector is mired in controversies, from metering disputes to ad hoc political committees, tariff issues, to negotiating cross border power trade.&nbsp;
Even basic statistics like electrification rates are held hostage to executive narratives with no clear standards and compliance on what counts as real access. Nepal's power sector seems to be running without a referee.
There are three agencies involved: the <a href="https://moewri.gov.np/">Ministry of Energy</a>, the NEA, and the little-known <a href="https://erc.gov.np/">Electricity Regulatory Commission (ERC),</a> each with a distinct mandate, at least on paper.
In a well-regulated market, issues like metering disputes and executive appointments would barely register outside the industry. In Nepal, such decisions often spill into political crises and can shake the fate of governments. Yet, the ERC is rarely seen or heard, even when these issues strike at the heart of its regulatory mandate.
Blurred roles have left Nepal’s power sector in a state of chronic overlap. The ministry often interferes with operations, drawn by the quiet influence that comes with the turf: contracts, budgets, and visibility.&nbsp;
NEA straddles the line between implementer and influencer, while the regulator still seems hesitant to assert its space.
Created in 2019 after years of industry bargaining, the regulator’s job is to establish rules, resolve disputes, and bring predictability and fairness back to the system. And this critical role remains a blind spot in Nepal’s energy debate and power struggles.
Disputes that should fall under regulatory inquiry and consultation, from the Time-of-Day (ToD) meter disputes and industrial payment defaults, to the NEA’s role in cross border power trade negotiations have instead become political flashpoints.
Despite the politics, if a regulator cannot assert itself in matters squarely within its mandate like pricing, contracts, disputes, compliance, what exactly is it regulating?&nbsp;
We did not create this new regulator just to be another spectator. But that, for now, is all it seems determined to be.
The regulatory mess runs deeper into the way Nepal prices its electricity. By many measures, Nepal’s electricity sector has made real progress. The country now exports surplus power to India while still relying on imports during peak demand. In 2023/24, Nepal became a net electricity exporter for the first time, selling as much power as &nbsp;two and half months of domestic demand.&nbsp;
Every hydropower <a href="https://nea.org.np/admin/assets/uploads/PPA_Rates.pdf">project under 100 megawatts is paid the same flat rate</a>: Rs8.40 per kilowatt-hour in the dry season, Rs4.80 in the wet season. Hard or easy, near or remote, the price stays flat.&nbsp;
Whether a project is built right along the accessible roads of Trisuli corridor or in the remote gorges of the Karnali that demand new roads and transmission lines to &nbsp;generation sites, it is the same price.
The Chamelia Hydropower Project cost <a href="https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/project-documents/41025-012-nep-tacr.pdf">NPR 56 crore per megawatt to build</a>. Chilime came in at about Rs140 million. In a functioning system, a regulator would benchmark these costs, scrutinise financial models, and adjust tariffs to reflect real-world differences. &nbsp;&nbsp;
To give the ERC some benefit of doubt: it is a young institution<s>.</s> But institutions do not mature by aging; they need to step up and take positions, enforce rules, intervene, and speak up when it’s easier to stay silent, whether the pressure comes from a utility boss or a political heavyweight, celebrity or not.&nbsp;
Nepal’s energy industry cannot afford a regulator that hides every time the stakes get high. That responsibility weighs even heavier today. Ram Prasad Dhital, the current Chair of the ERC, was not an outsider parachuted into the role. He served as one of the Commission’s founding cohort and has seen it through its formative years.&nbsp;
His second term cannot be for keeping the seat warm. But will the ERC act, or will it continue to choose the safer path of silence? As the ERC evolves, the challenge is not just about leadership. It must resist the prevailing tendency to solely rely on short-term contracts and familiar recycled bureaucratic networks.&nbsp;
Building a credible regulatory institution requires stability and technical depth, a professional core of energy experts, economists, engineers, financial analysts, and legal specialists who can audit costs, arbitrate disputes, and navigate the rapidly evolving regulatory terrains.&nbsp;
Tariffs must reflect real costs and real geographies. Export pricing must adapt to dynamic domestic and regional markets. Disputes must be settled through credible regulatory mechanisms rather than through endless political committees.
The real question now is not just what the ERC was created to do, but whether it has the will, the knowledge, and the courage to do it. &nbsp;And the longer it forgets that and drifts further to become another spectator, the deeper the price the industry will pay.
Bibek Raj Kandel works at the intersection of energy, climate, and political economy.&nbsp;

Nepal’s Power Struggles

The pre-monsoon season of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/republicans-and-royalists-on-nepal-s-streets">street upheaval</a> is upon us, and as public frustration builds up there is pressure once more on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-government-changes-again">Nepal’s revolving political leadership</a> to switch partners.
There has hardly been a day in the past month when Kathmandu’s main intersections have not been blocked by royal rallies, teacher’s marches, doctors’ demos, sit-ins by victims of cooperatives scams, and even the ruling UML last week staged its own show of youth force.
In the middle of all this is <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/oli-s-oscillations">Prime Minister K P Oli</a>, who assures us that all is well. He is sounding more and more like Emperor Nero.
The street demonstrations by various professions are about <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-s-corruption-carousel">corruption</a>, bad governance, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/job-insecurity-in-security-forces">job insecurity</a>, and unsustainable wages, but the general public finds resonance in the anger.
Teachers had been on warpath for a month, demanding that Parliament pass the School Education Bill for salaries and benefits on par with<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/nepals-uncivil-servants"> civil servants </a>and other reforms. &nbsp;
As it stands, Education Minister Bidhya Bhattarai of the UML had resigned last week following disagreements with Oli over meeting teachers’ demands. Earlier, Binda Pandey and Ushakiran Timalsina were suspended for daring to challenge Oli for taking a tycoon’s donation of real estate for the party office.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/class-act?%2F">Class Act</a>, Shristi Karki
However, on Wednesday, the teachers called off their protest after negotiating a nine-point deal with the government, warning that they would resume demonstrations if the agreements were not implemented.
The Nepal Medical Association has shut down non-essential medical services in solidarity with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/grass-is-greener-overseas-for-nepals-doctors">resident doctors</a> in private hospitals who are demanding stipends on par with government facilities.
For months, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/matter-of-life-and-debt">victims of cooperatives and loan sharks </a>have come to Kathmandu from all over the country to demand <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/justice-delayed-justice-denied-byrx8a1c">justice and compensation</a>. The government has formed multiple committees, signed many agreements, passed an ordinance to return their money, but relevant laws have languished.&nbsp;
All agitating groups have been given the runaround by successive governments led by the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/new-year-revolutions">three main parties</a>. Indeed, Oli, the NC’s Sher Bahadur Dueba, and Pushpa Kamal Dahal of the Maoist Centre have &nbsp;reached multi-point agreements with teachers, doctors, and victims of fraud to address their grievances. But they were <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/cop27-empty-promises-and-funding-failures">empty promises</a>.
And now that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/14-years-after-conflict-no-closure-in-nepal">the Maoists </a>are in the opposition, Dahal is using the street protests to drive a wedge in the ruling coalition. In fact, the only issue uniting all three parties so far is their objection to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-ghost-of-monarchy-returns-to-haunt-nepal">reinstate a Hindu monarchy</a> — although sections of the NC seem to be fence-sitting. &nbsp;
In Baluwatar, Oli issues directives to his ministers to hold marathon meetings with protesting groups even while some coalition partners in the NC question his handling of the demonstrations.
Haggling between the NC and UML on the appointment of the new Rastra Bank governor and appointments to the Constitutional Commission have widened the fissures within the coalition.
Various factions of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/republicans-and-royalists-on-nepal-s-streets">pro-monarchy groups</a> have also been holding different street rallies, including for the release of the royalist <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-party-reincarnating-hindu-monarchy">Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP)</a> leaders who were arrested following<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/a-tale-of-two-deaths"> the violent pro-monarchy protest in Tinkune last month</a>.
Nepal Police have released some detained RPP leaders but former journalist and party senior vice-president Rabindra Mishra remains in police custody, as does Durga Prasai, the business tycoon whom <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/tell-me-what-the-common-man-is-thinking">ex-king Gyanendra</a> had appointed to lead the Tinkune rally.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-s-deja-vu-on-black-friday">Nepal’s déjà vu on Black Friday</a>, Sonia Awale
<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-geopolitics-of-nepal-s-politics">Nepalis across the political spectrum</a> have condemned the continued detention and police treatment of Mishra, calling him a prisoner of conscience.
At another demonstration in Balkhu last week, the RPP criticised the government for not allowing peaceful march at the city centre.
“A <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/stemming-asia-s-democratic-decay">democratic state </a>must give citizens the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/nepal-has-press-freedom-but-no-freedom-after-press">right to assemble and express their opinions</a>, and to create public spaces where they can practice those views,” says Taranath Dahal of Freedom Forum.&nbsp;
Added Dahal: “Open platforms were established in Nepal for its citizens to be able to voice their opposition even during <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=17889">authoritarian systems</a>. But in an established republic where <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/no-freedom-after-expression">freedom of expression</a> is considered a fundamental right, we see an erosion of the public space.”
Shristi Karki

The Juggler

Extract from an addendum to Nepal's Two Wars, Chapter 2 in the updated edition of Essays on Nepal: Past and Present by Sam Cowan, a retired British Army general with a long association with the Gurkhas. The book was first published in 2018, and republished earlier this month by FinePrint exclusively on Amazon. The addendum details a one-to-one conversation the author had in the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8884">Royal Palace </a>with the <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8371">King Gyanendra</a> in November 2002 just after he had taken his initial steps on the road that ultimately led to <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14681">the abolition of the monarchy</a> in Nepal in 2008. In the early evening of September 16, 2002, in my role as Colonel Commandant of the Brigade of Gurkhas, I had my second and last official audience with King Gyanendra to give him an update on the Brigade’s activities over the previous 12 months. I had some 6 or 7 such audiences with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/preserving-king-birendra-s-family-home">King Birendra</a>.&nbsp; These were official affairs with the British ambassador of the day present, along with key <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=12233">palace officials</a> and a representative from Nepal's Foreign Ministry. The two monarchs were very different in character and temperament, but both treated me with the utmost civility and made the audiences as relaxed and easy for me as possible.&nbsp; It is, however, worth recording that when the official business had been covered, King Birendra, with a twinkle in his eye, often ended by asking, “Now General, what’s the gossip in London?” The second audience with <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8026">King Gyanendra </a>was my last official act in uniform. We came back to Kathmandu in the first week of November (after treks) to stay for a few nights with our Defence Attaché before heading back to the UK. Waiting for me was a message from the Palace saying that King Gyanendra would like to meet me informally: <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=6933">no uniform</a> and no ambassador.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080420_f9046f9882d4481781d14f2b64f18c7fbbea62562e1d74e3465de6d01fb43750.jpg" data-media-id="editor_7" data-image-id="20250421080420_f9046f9882d4481781d14f2b64f18c7fbbea62562e1d74e3465de6d01fb43750" data-rendition-name="original" width="1750" height="2406" loading="lazy" alt="Gyanendra crowned page 1"> <figcaption>Nepali Times Special Edition of 6-14 June 2001 with enthronement of Gyanendra. </figcaption> </figure>   <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_21333d6ae21828eb47fe3f849438d215fe2804460d47bb2896ef4aee4e895ad2.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250421080424_21333d6ae21828eb47fe3f849438d215fe2804460d47bb2896ef4aee4e895ad2" data-rendition-name="original" width="1500" height="1857" loading="lazy" alt="Royal massacre"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 22-29 June 2001 covering the royal massacre after which Gyanendra became king. </figcaption> </figure>  Although I had no idea what the purpose of the meeting might be, events in Kathmandu since I last saw the king put me on edge. On October 4, 2002, Gyanendra had dismissed Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, allegedly for failing to hold <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/what-goes-on-in-nepal-s-elections">elections</a>. He had put in place a new prime minister and a cabinet personally selected by him. When I heard the news on my travels, the people I met were generally supportive of the king’s actions. There was a general view that something had to be done, the country was going nowhere, and the king deserved his chance, not least to solve<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/14-years-after-conflict-no-closure-in-nepal"> the Maoist </a>problem. Back in Kathmandu, views were not so sanguine. The chosen prime minister, Lokendra Bahadur Chand, was a relic from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/mob-movement-and-mayhem">the Panchayat period</a> whose party had failed to win a single seat in the last elections held in 1999. Some of the chosen cabinet ministers had, to put it mildly, dubious reputations, and others had no record of proven competence in any field. There was a fear that the king’s real motive in dismissing <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/deubas-denouement">Deuba</a> was to start to reverse the democratic gains made since 1990. I informed <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-britain-mark-centenary-of-1923-treaty">the British ambassador</a> about the invitation. He was strongly against accepting it, which was probably the clinching reason for my decision to do the polite thing and accept it. On the evening of November 7, 2002, I presented myself at the royal palace, alone and in civilian attire.&nbsp; As in the past, the Military Secretary, Major General Vivek Shah, met and escorted me into the presence of the monarch. This time, however, he was politely asked to leave the room and shut the door behind him. King Gyanendra greeted me warmly and invited me to sit down.&nbsp; Read also:<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-ghost-of-monarchy-returns-to-haunt-nepal"> The ghost of monarchy returns to haunt Nepal</a>, Shristi Karki  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_e382af945d0ad2a04ae41fabe5393f793dd10f54cb1220f111c7c9e7423eb558.jpg" data-media-id="editor_15" data-image-id="20250421080424_e382af945d0ad2a04ae41fabe5393f793dd10f54cb1220f111c7c9e7423eb558" data-rendition-name="original" width="1000" height="993" loading="lazy" alt="Gyanendra coup"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 4-10 February 2005 after king Gyanendra's coup imposed media censorship. anendra became king. </figcaption> </figure>  I had wondered, and to be truthful, had worried, not just about the purpose of the meeting, but about how the conversation might start and develop. I reduced my resolve to two points: be polite but speak candidly. The latter resolve was quickly put to the test with the king’s opening words: “Sam, [in previous meetings it had been ‘General’, you walk the highways and byways of this land more than most, tell me what the common man is thinking?” &nbsp;“Your Majesty, I have no idea what they are thinking, but they are waiting.” “Waiting?” “Yes, Your Majesty, they are waiting to see whether what you did some weeks ago in appointing your own prime minister and cabinet ministers is going to make any difference to their lives or whether it is just going to be more Kathmandu hot air.” “Everything is going to be difficult and is going to take time, a lot of time.” “Your Majesty, time is the one thing you don’t have. You must act quickly and decisively to take advantage of the opportunity you have created. Everyone knows that you have appointed these new ministers. Why don’t you get them in here one by one and tell them that they have three months to deliver a programme in their area of responsibility that is going to make a difference to people’s lives? Most will fail to do so. Sack them! It will be a powerful signal of your strong intent to deliver real change.” I can express the opening of our conversation in this way because just about every word is still etched in my mind. The king’s response to my last quoted words was to challenge me to give an example of something that could be delivered quickly. I can give a verbatim record of what I said in response to this unexpected challenge: “Health posts, Your Majesty, there is no shortage of them throughout the country as building them has been one of the sources of local corruption, but very few have any medicine to issue at present or have skilled people to assess and meet medical needs. Your Majesty, children are dying for lack of a few pills. Given the right priority, over a period, say of six months, every health post could be fully stocked with medicine and manned with trained people. This is something I could help to lead for you as I know it would have strong international backing. At last, people would know that you mean business.” As I warmed to the theme, I could see no sign of the king having any enthusiasm for the idea, and I quickly disengaged as it dawned on me, as it had clearly dawned on the king, that the reason for the deficiencies in health posts was to prevent any Maoist combatant from gaining access to any <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/tech-away/nepal-s-health-tech-industry-is-here-to-stay">medical support</a>, and if this meant people suffering, so be it. The subject of the Maoist insurgency inevitably came up, and I took the opportunity to elaborate on what is written in the final four paragraphs of the article above. I advised King Gyanendra that, self-evidently, since there were three parties in the conflict—him, the Maoists, and the political parties—it was imperative that he form an alliance with one of them, preferably the political parties; otherwise, he would find himself isolated, as the other two parties would inevitably, at some stage, form their own alliance. However, it quickly became apparent that the king’s mind was on a totally different track. On the Maoists, he told me that he had channels open to them, but he was scathing about the political party leaders. He made it clear that they would be waiting for a very long time before he gave any power back to them, and that is a polite way of expressing the actual words he used, but “crawling through the door” is a phrase which has stuck in my mind.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080424_5403455ff6168f0d202a96cb53edea69136d74d59b989cfcc7cc4a1d57672cb5.jpg" data-media-id="editor_17" data-image-id="20250421080424_5403455ff6168f0d202a96cb53edea69136d74d59b989cfcc7cc4a1d57672cb5" data-rendition-name="original" width="2000" height="1317" loading="lazy" alt="fall of monarchy"> <figcaption>Nepali Times 28 April-3 May 2005 with cover image by Ajay Joshi of jubilant protesters after street demonstrations sidelined king Gyanendra, paving the way for a ceasfire and restoration of democracy. </figcaption> </figure>  As the conversation developed, it became ever clearer that King Gyanendra had decided to go in alone, relying on the misleading assurances he was constantly receiving from <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14954">the army</a>, and no doubt his close advisers, that the Maoists could and would be quickly defeated militarily, and taken out of the equation. This would obviate the need for him to do any deal with the political parties.&nbsp; Thus, the way would be clear for him to establish a version of his father’s Panchayat system, under a constitution that would be granted to the people by him, their sovereign, as his father and brother had done in 1962 and 1990. As in those constitutions, ultimate power would have remained in the sovereign’s hands. This proposed direction of travel was very clear from what the king said to me. In sum, King Gyanendra was motivated by a desire to emulate his immediate predecessors by granting his people a constitution that would restore his father’s Panchayat system in a modern form and give him a central role in decision-making. What was particularly dispiriting was that beyond this single objective he had no plan worthy of the name, nor demonstrably did he have the people with the skills to implement an appropriate plan even if one had existed. Crucially and depressingly, there was little or no indication from the king that he realised that such a course of action could put Nepal’s monarchy into serious jeopardy, as indeed proved to be the case. <h2>King Twice</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250420110436_315d519fe3d68d2406ebe1480fed54720fbf21b8907a4da5cde751fdc623d445.jpg" data-media-id="editor_19" data-image-id="20250420110436_315d519fe3d68d2406ebe1480fed54720fbf21b8907a4da5cde751fdc623d445" data-rendition-name="original" width="1302" height="632" loading="lazy" alt="“Tell me what the common man is thinking!”"> </figure>  <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=8371">Gyanendra Bir Bikram Shah has been king twice</a>. In 1950 he was enthroned briefly as a child king (left, above) by the Rana Prime Minister Mohan Shumsher when his grandfather, King Tribhuvan, fled to exile in India. In 2001 he was crowned king again after the massacre in the royal palace in which his brother King Birendra and nine other members of his family were killed by Crown Prince Dipendra.&nbsp; During his second reign, Gyanendra gradually asserted power by sacking Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba in 2002, and then taking full control after the 1 February 2005 coup. He was sidelined after the ceasefire in April 2006, and became a commoner after the Constituent Assembly finally <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/from-nepali-press/Ftnp-abolishing,624">abolished the monarchy in 2008</a>. In the past year, Gyanendra has tried to exploit public dissatisfaction with the political parties to restore the monarchy.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250421080432_26ef4a4b0e3cee9fdc6794446702efe16550d293904b4f6dd46fe35d4d10c788.jpg" data-media-id="editor_22" data-image-id="20250421080432_26ef4a4b0e3cee9fdc6794446702efe16550d293904b4f6dd46fe35d4d10c788" data-rendition-name="original" width="1136" height="702" loading="lazy" alt="Essays on Nepal by Sam Cowen"> </figure>

“Tell me what the common man is thinking!”

I have just finished reading the recently published Cuckooland: Where the Rich Own the Truth, by Tom Burgis that was <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-crony-communism-exposed">recently reviewed in this paper</a>, and examines the phenomenon of corruption across several continents, and the career of powerbroker Mohamed Amersi. 
In the Nepal section, the focus is on Amersi’s links with prominent Nepali ‘businessman’ <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=776#google_vignette">Ajeya Sumargi</a>, the activities of the Nordic telecommunications giant TeliaSonera and its Nepali network Ncell, and Amersi’s relationship first with <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/food-of-the-royals">the royal family</a> and after 2006, with certain prominent politicians, including the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/all-is-fair-in-war-and-peace">Maoist </a>leader formerly known as ‘Prachanda’.
It is well recognised in Nepal that <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/nepal-s-corruption-carousel">corruption</a> in high places is one of the major features of Nepal’s political economy. In February, while I was visiting Kathmandu for the first time in five years, there was an editorial in The Kathmandu Post headed ‘Rotting from the Head’ which suggested that ‘frustration with corruption, mismanagement and bad governance is reaching a boiling point’.
The latest Transparency International report showed that the corruption perception index (CPI) for Nepal was 34 out of 100, marginally lower than the previous year. In the review period, <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=15139">Prachanda</a> (the CPN Maoist Centre chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal) was prime minister until mid-July 2024 when he was replaced in the merry-go-round of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-geopolitics-of-nepal-s-politics">Nepali politics</a>, by UML chief K P Oli, the current prime minister.
Several decisions of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/left-led-coalition-upturns-nepal-politics">Oli-led government</a>, including one to build his party’s central office with funds from <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5082">Min Bahadur Gurung of Bhatbhateni</a> and the Giribandhu Tea Estate scam related to the illegal <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/This/peaceful-land-movement,658">use of land</a> exceeding the prescribed ceiling, were just the latest <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ciaa-traps-small-fish-lets-big-ones-go">corruption cases </a>linked to the prime minister.
Pushpa Kamal Dahal claimed that the two other major parties, the Nepali Congress (NC) and the UML had plotted his removal because of his ‘campaign against corruption’, but he himself was compromised by colleagues like <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-rise-and-fall-of-comrade-mahara">Krishna Bahadur Mahara</a>, who was implicated in a gold smuggling case and, arguably, by his own dealings with Ajeya Sumargi and TeliaSonera, that are discussed by Tom Burgis in Cuckooland.
The <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/rsp-quits-nepal-coalition">Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) </a>emerged dramatically as the fourth largest party in the House of Representatives in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepals-local-polls-a-rehearsal-for-federal-elections">2022</a> on a platform of <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5944">corruption control </a>and <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/Comment/compassion-better-governance-Nepal-development,299">good governance</a>. But its president, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-rise-and-fall-of-rabi-lamichhane">Rabi Lamichhane</a>, had been suspended as a lawmaker and faces charges of embezzlement of the deposits of cooperatives in five districts.
Other politicians also, including former NC home minister Balkrishna Khand, who was only released on bail after detention on the charge of sending Nepalis as <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/scapegoating-a-champion-of-democracy">fake refugees from Bhutan</a> to the United States, and former prime ministers Baburam Bhattarai and Madhav Kumar Nepal (now leaders of their own small parties) were considered not to be ‘above question’ with regard to illegal sales of government land at Lalita Niwas.
On 20 March 2025, the East Asia Forum published a piece by Anil Sigdel, founder of Nepal Matters in Washington DC, lecturer at the University of Vienna and author of India in the Era of China’s Belt and Road Initiative: How Modi Responds to Xi. He looked back on the previous year and suggested that corruption and crisis defined Nepal’s <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/south-asia-2040-qxr16oup">2024</a>.
In addition to the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/poor-cash-rich-nepal">dire state of the economy</a>, stagnant <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-economy-shifts-away-from-farming">agricultural production</a>, the virtual absence of industry, massive<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-geopolitics-of-nepal-s-water-and-electricity"> trade deficit especially with India</a> and crippling <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/the-new-equaliser">reliance on remittances</a> from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-on-my-mind">Nepalis living and working abroad</a>, Sigdel highlights the sclerosis, the pervasive corruption and the rent-seeking of the political elite, and the phenomenon of what might be termed ‘the abuse of public trust for private gain’ -- a definition of corruption provided by Tom Burgis.
Now, Nepal has introduced a fresh provision in its newly-amended <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/anti-corruption-vaccine-for-nepal">anti-corruption</a> law that will penalise public officials not only for the abuse of power but also for their inaction or indecision. The amended Anti-Corruption Act 2002, which took five years to pass through the federal parliament, has now come into effect following presidential approval. Offenders could face up to six months detention or a fine of up to Rs50,000, or both. 
The Act also imposes up to a year’s imprisonment or a fine of Rs500,000, or both, for officials found guilty of abusing their official position or duties. But this amendment is directed essentially at <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/nepals-uncivil-servants">civil servants</a>, and does little to deal with those in high places, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/the-business-of-politics-in-nepal">politicians and businesses</a>, who continue all too often to abuse public trust for private gain.
Is it too much to hope that continued pressure from the public and scrutiny by the media will not only bring to light corruption where it exists but gradually reduce its incidence? 
David Seddon is Director of Critical Faculty, author and co-author of many publications on Nepal, including Nepal in Crisis (with John Cameron and P M Blaikie) first published in 1980.

Higher corruption in high places

There was a time not long ago when Nepal had a female president, a female Speaker of the House and a female Chief Justice. Women accounted for <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/regular-columns/GUEST-COLUMN/politics-power-women,773">33% of seats</a> in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/parliamentary-arithmetics">Parliament</a> following the provision in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/the-letter-and-spirit">the 2015 Constitution</a> that mandated at least one-third female representation. It looked like Nepal was way ahead of everyone else in the region and much of the world. But by <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-local-election-gives-power-back-to-people">the 2022 elections</a>, the country regressed. Women were token figures used by male party bosses to use Proportional Representation seats. The increase in <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/editorial/autumn-of-the-patriarchy,3149">numerical representation of women</a> has not necessarily resulted in substantive changes for citizens.&nbsp; In the 2017 elections, political parties primarily assigned women to the deputy position in local governments with less authority than male chiefs. They treated their nominations as a mere formality, rather than a genuine commitment to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/placing-nepali-women-first-past-the-post">female leadership</a>. The Local Level Election Act 2017 mandated that half the chairpersons/chiefs, vice-chairpersons, or deputy chiefs of municipalities, as well as the chief and deputy chief of District Coordination Committees must be women. However, in the 2022 elections, the parties blatantly disregarded the quotas and deliberately fielded more male candidates. <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/voters-cynical-about-electoral-alliances">Electoral alliances and coalitions</a> were more important for party bosses than female representation. The alliance of the Nepali Congress (NC) and CPN (Maoist) parties meant that male candidates got the preference. Women’s representation in municipal positions declined by 20% between the two elections.&nbsp; <a href="https://www.alignplatform.org/sites/default/files/2023-10/nepal_-_jwas.pdf?utm_source=chatgpt.com">A briefing note</a> on gender norms in local government and women leaders by Janaki Women Awareness (JWAS) highlights the exceedingly low <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/female-foreign-envoys-on-gender-gap,1189">representation of women </a>in 2017 and 2022. Out of 753 local units, only 18 women were elected as mayors or chairpersons, some of the municipalities just ignored the provision for the deputy to be a woman. Much like other sectors where women face <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/vow-against-vaw">gender-based discrimination and challenges</a>, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-enterprising-women-in-politics">female politicians in Nepal</a> experience the same treatment, if not worse. Many are openly disrespected, not allowed to speak or are barred from performing their duties. Those who are doing well are barely recognised while the likes of Balen Shah and Harka Sampang hog the headlines. All that may be about to change. A group of Nepali feminists have come together to empower<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/women-leaders-set-example-for-rest-of-nepal"> local women leaders</a>, amplify their influence within political parties and electoral structures to ensure the constitutional right to inclusion is not just promised but realised. The Inter-Generational Feminist Forum (IGFF) has launched a nationwide campaign to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-power-to-have-a-say-in-her-story">secure equal representation for women</a> at all levels of governance, and raise awareness about women’s role in local elections while challenging gender-based discrimination.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025030713030_0e66faccc85b8e821ed7ac9113d7616e3c17c2dcb2cf61e2b48f7ce38400d363.jpg" data-media-id="editor_13" data-image-id="2025030713030_0e66faccc85b8e821ed7ac9113d7616e3c17c2dcb2cf61e2b48f7ce38400d363" data-rendition-name="original" width="1599" height="975" loading="lazy" alt="Anupam Abhiyan 2 "> </figure>  Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/women-leaders-seen-but-not-heard">Women leaders seen, but not heard</a>, Shristi Karki “Everyone, including women and men, must jointly work for this initiative if we are to have a better future ahead. Everyone must think of what our responsibility is and what contributions we must make for our upcoming generations,” says Rita Thapa, founder of Tewa and member of IGFF. A travelling caravan called <a href="https://www.studiofreedom.org/women-leadership-anupam.html">Anupam Abhiyan</a> will follow the East-West Highway, visiting grassroots communities to promote women’s empowerment and political participation. <a href="https://www.studiofreedom.org/">Freedom Studio</a>, the campaign’s creative partner, has been producing graphics and multimedia content, documenting the journey through social media platforms. Locally-led parades and marches are being organised in Taplejung, Mustang, Sindhuli, Jumla, Parsa, Ramechhap and other districts. Their slogan ‘८४ मा महिला पहिला’ (Women First in 2027) highlights the focus on bringing judicial, inclusive, and equitable representation of women at all levels in the 2027 elections. Rajya Laxmi Shrestha was one of many women who found their voice and independence. With training from the Women Empowerment Center in Kirtipur, Shrestha began <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=14779">sewing</a> bags, turning her <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/diaspora-diaries/the-return-of-a-master-baker">skills into a source of income </a>and managing her household on her own terms, unlike in the past when she relied on her husband. As the Anupam rally moved through Kirtipur, Rajya Laxmi played the flute and used music to communicate the movement’s message forward. The campaign spreads love and kindness so people are prioritised over power, building a sense of community and emotional attachment to those involved. “Leadership is not a position, it is an attitude. Being a leader and performing leadership duties regardless of being in a leadership position is true leadership,” explains activist Sharu Joshi Shrestha, another IGFF member. Shrestha likens the campaign to a sacred duty, and hopes that it will empower women from all walks of life, especially those from <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-marginalised-on-the-margins">marginalised communities</a>. Regardless of legal provisions, politics is inclusive for women only on paper. In reality, it follows an entrenched patriarchal script. The campaign is an example of how women can organise themselves in solidarity and with a sense of purpose to change the way this country is governed.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250308020356_6825169952209d739aa156515636ac901cbb3dac491ee7b569e55c79ef97b51e.jpg" data-media-id="editor_20" data-image-id="20250308020356_6825169952209d739aa156515636ac901cbb3dac491ee7b569e55c79ef97b51e" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="Anupam Abhiyan NT"> </figure>  When rallying women step into leadership and claim decision-making power, real change goes a step ahead. Nepali women have already proven to be as good, if not better, managers and leaders. In the rare few wards and municipal councils where both the chair and deputy are women, they have demonstrated better governance and service delivery — even if the two are from different parties. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/can-nepal-elections-change-its-male-stream-politics">Can Nepal elections change its male-stream politics?</a> Aditi Adhikari Elsewhere, the lack of women and indigenous engagement in decision making has set back action in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/support-for-reproductive-health-of-nepali-women">reproductive rights,</a> wage equity, <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepalis-are-dying-because-they-are-poor">healthcare access</a>, and <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/alarming-rise-in-violence-against-women">violence against women</a>. Between 23-24 March, the campaign will gather in Padmalaya in Nawalpur with a focus on <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/Accountable,842">community health and well-being</a>. The team also holds virtual meetings every Sunday, apart from their grassroots messaging. One of the coordinators of Anupam Abhiyan and founder president of Mitini Nepal Laxmi Ghalan says they also focus on intersectionality such as whether it is a <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/double-affirmation-dalit-women-elected-to-local-bodies-Nepal,3743">Dalit woman</a>, a member of the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-is-ahead-of-many-countries-in-lgbtqi-rights">LGBTQIA+ community</a>, or someone from any political background to ensure participation without any bias. “If women can run households, why can’t they run the country?” Ghalan says as she highlights the importance of political engagement: “If we don’t step in at the party level, our voices will go unheard and our issues unresolved. In the upcoming elections, why settle for 33% representation when we can aim for 51%? Women deserve not just token positions but real leadership.” &nbsp;&nbsp;

Women first in 2027

A cabinet meeting last week appointed former journalist Sharad Ojha as the chair of the Nepal Insurance Authority, the regulator of the sector. Ojha has no qualifications for the post as required by Nepal’s Insurance Act.&nbsp;
His family ties to Nepali Congress president <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/deuba-5-qh371fm4">Sher Bahadur Deuba</a> has been cited as the reason he got to bypass appointment criteria.
This is just the latest example. Bending the law to appoint <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-s-crony-communism-exposed">cronies</a> and special interest groups to leadership positions in regulatory bodies has <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/editorial/crony-communism">become the norm in Nepal</a>.
Ojha’s predecessor was former Home Secretary Surya Prasad Silwal, who was suspended two months before the end of his term in December after the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/ciaa-traps-small-fish-lets-big-ones-go">Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA)</a> filed a corruption case against him in the Special Court. Days after Ojha’s appointment, the court cleared Silwal of corruption charges.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/search?q=corruption+case">Nepal’s corruption carousel</a>
Before Silwal, the Nepal Insurance Authority was led by Chiranjivi Chapagain, a relative of Chandra Dhakal of the IME Group. Chapagain is accused of granting approval to 10 insurance companies under dubious circumstances and favouring <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/business/ime-insurance">IME Life Insurance’</a>s approval.
Meanwhile, intense lobbying by interest groups with ties to both <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-government-changes-again">Prime Minister Oli</a> and PM-in-waiting Deuba allowed Santosh Narayan Shrestha’s appointment as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Board of Nepal (SEBON) in December. Shrestha promptly paid his dues to the groups that put him in office by making preparations to grant them permission to operate stock exchange.
Shrestha was preceded by hotelier Ramesh Kumar Hamal, the recommendation procedure and committee for whom were changed to ensure his appointment.
During his tenure, Hamal hastily amended a law that allowed specific companies to sell premium stocks amid ongoing debates, &nbsp;and another one allowing the operation of stock exchanges with private sector investment instead of public companies. None of this raised eyebrows.
Hamal’s predecessor Bhishma Raj Dhungana, a former Nepal Rastra Bank official, was dismissed as SEBON chair following allegations of irregularities.&nbsp;
Most of these recent individuals were appointed heads of regulatory bodies under PM Oli and Finance Minister Bishnu Paudel and probably at their behest.
The appointments at the Nepal Insurance Authority and SEBON reflect a blatant disregard for the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/federalism-rule-of-law-and-the-judiciary">rule of law</a>. Such practice is also rampant in the cooperatives and real estate sectors, where <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/nepal-risks-being-blacklisted-on-money-laundering">illegal financial dealings</a> and bad faith business is modus operandi.
Meanwhile, Energy Minister Deepak Khadka, also a hydropower entrepreneur, is set on ousting <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/from-the-nepali-press/more-than-half-of-nepal-s-electricity-imported-from-india">Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA)</a> managing director <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/latest/kulman-ghising-to-stay-on">Kulman Ghising</a>. He previously ordered the removal of Dudhkoshi Hydropower Project CEO Bimal Gurung for criticising him on <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/no-comment">social media</a>.&nbsp;
The minister has a major conflict of interest because of his involvement in private energy sector, and is pressuring parliamentary committees and regulatory bodies to amend the law to allow the sale of 50% of the shares of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/multimedia/missing-pieces-of-the-hydropower-jigsaw">hydropower projects </a>during the so-called 'lock-in period', which prevents the sale of promoter shares.
Now, lobbyists have set their sights on the Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB). Maha Prasad Adhikari’s tenure ends in April, and the same groups behind the appointment of the chiefs of regulatory bodies like SEBON and Nepal Insurance Authority are going door to door of governing coalition leaders to have their candidate appointed.&nbsp;
The book Why Nations Fail by Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson—co-winners of last year’s Nobel Prize for Economics with economist Simon Johnson—describes how public institutions are misused, weakened, and pushed toward failure by those with access to power.
Regulatory bodies are crucial to maintaining fair competition and ethical market practices. They exist to serve Nepal’s public. However, they are being deliberately undermined by special interest groups paying off authorities for plum positions that will enrich them and their political patrons. &nbsp;
The government ordered the Department of Money Laundering to ‘wait’ as the body sought permission to take action against Ajeya Sumargi for illicit dealing.
It was thus unsurprising that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) placed Nepal on its grey list in February for failing to take effective and result-oriented action to prevent money laundering.
Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/black-white-and-grey">Black, white and grey</a>, Ramesh Kumar
The international community has raised a red flag against malgovernance, political interference, conflicts of interest, and impunity. The world is watching, but Nepal’s politico-corporate interests are too deep in greed to care.
Ramesh Kumar

Public-Private Collusion

The winter session of Parliament is set to begin amidst a warmer-than-usual winter season. But things do not look too cosy between the governing coalition and the opposition parties.&nbsp;
Pushpa Kamal Dahal’s Maoist Centre is currently benched, and is trying to ride a rising wave of public discontent. It has in its crosshairs the coalition’s plan to fast-track five ordinances related to governance, business, investment and real estate. Expect sloganeering and rostrum gheraos when the august House convenes.
Opposition leaders say the issue is not with the content of the draft amendments themselves, but the manner in which they are being passed.&nbsp;
This is not new. Nepal’s leaders love to amend laws through ordinances rather than votes in Parliament. What is puzzling is why a government made up of an alliance of two of the biggest parties with the near two-thirds majority required to pass laws through the Lower House, resorted to executive decisions to introduce new laws?
What, then, is the role of the legislators when the job they were elected by the Nepali people to do is largely carried out through executive orders?&nbsp;
The political leadership justifies taking the ordinance route because of delays in the legislative process. This is emblematic of a wider problem in Nepal’s politics, where leaders employ ad hoc solutions to problems instead of taking a long hard look into the flaws within the legislative process, governance and the state mechanism as a whole.
Understandably, this is such a can of worms that the leadership is unwilling to confront it head on. But confront it they must. If the long-serving prime ministers of the three parties carefully read the outcome of the recent Sharecast Initiative public opinion survey, they will learn that more than half of the Nepali public is unhappy with the direction politics is headed.&nbsp;
The survey should be an eye-opener and a dire warning to politicians to shape up or ship out in the limited time ahead of the general elections in 2027. Poll respondents have listed weak governance and corruption holding back job creation. Most respondents cited migration as the most attractive option. Nepalis are therefore voting with their feet.
The survey shows that Nepalis reject pre-electoral alliances and the tottering coalitions they produce, blaming this for the country having to suffer five revolving door governments in the last five years.&nbsp;
Prime Minister Oli has made it a point to reassert that he will hand over power to Deuba as agreed. Deuba certainly needed reassurance, since his chance at a sixth premiership in these turn-by-turn deals had been scuttled more than once before.&nbsp;
Deuba and Oli don’t get it. The 2022 election with the rise of independent alternatives was an early warning. The Sharecast Initiative survey confirms this disillusionment with serial prime ministers and their cadre and cronies. &nbsp;
Instead, political leaders are too busy putting out (or lighting) fires within their own parties and alliances. The establishment is focused on partnerships, not policy, and this has hurt good governance.
But not everything is doom and gloom. Respondents in the survey have a seemingly contradictory view that despite disappointment with the state of the state, a majority feel the quality of their lives have improved. They are also quite satisfied with the performance of local governments. &nbsp;
And even as elected leaders try increasingly to undermine the legitimacy of the press, and amid a rapidly evolving digital landscape, Nepalis by and large have maintained trust in the mainstream media.&nbsp;
Journalists would do well not take that trust for granted, however. The media is partly responsible for spreading public cynicism and despair. Daily headlines are obsessed with quarrelsome politicians, and its blow-by-blow coverage in turn keeps them quarrelling perpetually.
Positive news does not sell media subscriptions, and social media algorithms feed on fear-mongering, anger and hatred. Politics is not just about who stabbed whom on the back yesterday. Infighting has become so endless that it is to be expected and not breaking news.&nbsp;
Coverage of the Sharecast Initiative survey results by the media last week was followed by vigorous debate on its results. Many on social media were incensed that it dared to show that Nepalis were half-hopeful about the future. Those who agreed that it was not all hopeless were mercilessly trolled. It behooves some to be doomscrollers.
In all this, there was a deafening silence from the &nbsp;political class. Are they even listening to the voice of the people? &nbsp;
They should get hold of a copy of the survey, and chart out a strategy for their future political survival based on that. But we can already tell them the main message: Clean up your act and start delivering.
Shristi Karki

Politics as usual

If there is one thing that has been consistently true for the Nepali public, it is that despite war, corruption and governance failure, they are inherent optimists. They see the good even in politicians and bureaucrats who do not deserve it.
Ever since <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/page/himal-media-public-opinion-survey-2015-outcome#google_vignette">Himalmedia</a> (the publisher of Nepali Times) started conducting public opinion surveys in 2004, respondents have shown dissatisfaction with Nepal’s rulers, a majority voting ‘None of the Above’ when asked for their party preference. Yet, in annual polls after that, they have always been hopeful about the future.
It still seems to be the case. The results of the latest public opinion poll by Sharecast Initiative show that most Nepalis are fed up with the chronic poor performance of &nbsp;established political parties, but they feel the system still gives them the option of finding alternative leaders. In other words, Nepalis are angry but not angry enough to take to the streets. &nbsp;
That should explain the apparent contradiction in their responses. Asked about the living standard of their families and the direction the country is headed, half the respondents said there had been positive improvement in their lives, but about the same number said they were disillusioned with politics and politicians.
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Has your life and that of your family improved compared to five years ago (in %)?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-Cd2eg" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Cd2eg/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="385" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
The public’s message to the old parties is clear: perk up, or we will vote for alternative leaders like Kathmandu mayor Balen Shah or Rabi Lamichhane of the RSP. The country is ruled by a coalition of the two largest parties in Parliament, but there are no signs that they understand, or care, about the public mood.&nbsp;
The Sharecast survey was conducted among 3,000 households across 52 districts in seven provinces between 1 December 2024 to 11 January 2025. In it, more than half the respondents said that their lives and that of their families had improved in the past five years. Another 16.2% said it was worse or much worse, and for 26.70% things remained the same.
Asked about the situation of the country, again half the respondents said it had improved, citing infrastructure development as the main reason. But 24.20% said it was the same, and another 24% said it was worse. They went on to list unemployment, poverty, lack of road access or maintenance, corruption, inflation, lack of quality education and political instability as their main concerns.&nbsp;
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="How is the state of the country compared to the last five years (in %)?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-gjjLn" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/gjjLn/3/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="440" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
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<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="What should the government prioritize? " aria-label="Column Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-swcOX" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/swcOX/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="549" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
 
A new global study has found that Nepal ranks fourth in the list of countries with remittance making up the highest share of GDP. This is unsustainable but remittances are propping up not just the national economy, but also individual households. Nearly 1 million Nepalis left the country for work or study in the past year, and about 40% of young Nepali men are not in Nepal.&nbsp;
This could explain the seeming paradox between respondents saying their lives have improved, but that they are not satisfied with the political leadership. Indeed, over 70% of the poll respondents said foreign employment provided the best future. &nbsp;
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Is Nepal is moving politically in the right direction (in %)?" aria-label="Pie Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-zsvK8" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/zsvK8/3/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="385" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
More than half the respondents felt that Nepal’s economy was in bad shape, while 24.2% thought that it was ‘very good’. Another 16.5% rated the situation as average. And since the economy is intrinsically linked to politics, a majority of respondents (68%) felt that Nepal’s politics is headed in the wrong direction. But most respondents (71%) seemed happy with the way the local government was performing, saying they received timely services at the local level.
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="How is the state of economy?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-EE4AB" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/EE4AB/2/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="425" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
Respondents were also asked to pinpoint why Nepal’s leaders kept being elected over and over again. They mostly blamed ‘vote buying’ (52.10%), and 24.10% said because voters were satisfied with a candidate’s performance, with 21.80% saying voting patterns were determined by party loyalty.&nbsp;
With the government rocked by high-profile scandals exposed by the media, the Nepalis public seemed to be fed up with corruption in everyday life -- 80% of respondents said corruption was rampant, and only 0.70% said there was no corruption at all. Another 15% also admitted they had bribed government officials in the past year.
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="How widespread is corruption in Nepal?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-Q0SpE" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Q0SpE/4/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="425" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
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<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Have you had to bribe government official in the past year?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-lDV9s" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/lDV9s/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="462" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
When <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/article/nation/nepalis-opinion-on-leaders-federalism-secularism,2508">Himalmedia conducted its 2015 annual nationwide public opinion poll</a> just before the promulgation of the new Constitution, respondents were asked if Nepal should be a Hindu state. Slightly more than half wanted Nepal to be secular.
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Should Nepal be a Hindu nation or remain a secular state (in %)?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-j2aGM" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/j2aGM/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="462" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
Interestingly, ten years later, the country is still almost equally divided between secularism and Hindu state – despite the popular narrative that if there was a referendum the country restoring the Hindu state would win overwhelmingly. Himalmedia polls after the abolition of the monarchy showed support for a return of kingship in the single digits, and although Sharecast did not have a question about it in the current poll, one can assume that support for the monarchy may have seen a slight increase as a reaction to the perceived incompetence of the established parties.&nbsp;
For the past few years, Nepal has been ruled by coalitions, often with alliances between parties with diametrically opposing ideologies even if they do not stick to it. A majority of respondents in the survey (74%) were against electoral alliances.&nbsp;
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Your thoughts on electoral alliances?" aria-label="Donut Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-U2rbN" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/U2rbN/2/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="364" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
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<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Why do the same people keep getting elected?" aria-label="Stacked Bars" id="datawrapper-chart-Oy2Hf" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Oy2Hf/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="459" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
The current coalition came into existence supposedly to amend constitutional provisions regarding proportional representation, but the public perception is that K P Oli of the UML and the NC’s Sher Bahadur Deuba saw common cause in previous Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane of the RSP investigating top leaders in both parties for corruption.
An amendment to the Constitution scrapping proportional representation would make it more difficult for smaller parties like the RSP to gain seats in the House, as well as women candidates and those from marginalised communities. Nearly half of the respondents (46%) said major amendments to the constitution were necessary.&nbsp;
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Is it time for constitutional amendment?" aria-label="Pie Chart" id="datawrapper-chart-mcIzw" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/mcIzw/2/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="500" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
But what should be priority areas for the government? Controlling inflation, improving the economy, creating jobs, delivery and infrastructure, governance and social injustice were the obvious picks. Environmental problems and press freedom also made it to the list, but it was clearly not the top priority of most.
<div class="embed-block"><iframe src='https://flo.uri.sh/visualisation/21366581/embed' title='Interactive or visual content' class='flourish-embed-iframe' frameborder='0' scrolling='no' style='width:100%;height:600px;' sandbox='allow-same-origin allow-forms allow-scripts allow-downloads allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-top-navigation-by-user-activation'></iframe><div style='width:100%!;margin-top:4px!important;text-align:right!important;'><a class='flourish-credit' href='https://public.flourish.studio/visualisation/21366581/?utm_source=embed&utm_campaign=visualisation/21366581' target='_top' style='text-decoration:none!important'><img alt='Made with Flourish' src='https://public.flourish.studio/resources/made_with_flourish.svg' style='width:105px!important;height:16px!important;border:none!important;margin:0!important;'> </a></div></div>
 
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Professions and businesses Nepalis are most attracted to?" aria-label="Stacked Bars" id="datawrapper-chart-3rWSO" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/3rWSO/1/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="507" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
Trust in various institutions yielded some interesting results. As in previous Himalmedia polls, trust in the Nepal Army remains high (40.30%). Even the Nepal Police has recovered some of its respect (35.10%). As expected, people had a poor opinion of the office of the Prime Minister (15.30%), scoring even lower than provincial governments (20.30%).&nbsp;
Mayors and their deputies scored higher on the trust-o-meter (36.30%), and civil society improved its standing (47.70%). The mass media always scored consistently high in annual Himalmedia polls in the 2019s, with 87-90% approval ratings. It went down in previous Sharecast polls where the distinction was not made between social media and mass media, but in the current survey mainstream media trust level is higher than any other institution at 57.50%.&nbsp;
<div class="embed-block"><iframe title="Trust of institutions and positions (in %)" aria-label="Stacked Bars" id="datawrapper-chart-vzRf3" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/vzRf3/3/" scrolling="no" frameborder="0" style="width: 0; min-width: 100% !important; border: none;" height="443" data-external="1"></iframe><script type="text/javascript">!function(){"use strict";window.addEventListener("message",(function(a){if(void 0!==a.data["datawrapper-height"]){var e=document.querySelectorAll("iframe");for(var t in a.data["datawrapper-height"])for(var r=0;r<e.length;r++)if(e[r].contentWindow===a.source){var i=a.data["datawrapper-height"][t]+"px";e[r].style.height=i}}}))}(); </script></div>
Previous surveys have shown that although 90% of those with Internet connection used social media platforms regularly, trust in its content was below 10%. For Nepal’s mainstream press, the lesson is clear: to maintain the public trust, it should strive to defend its credibility with greater professionalism.&nbsp;
It also shows that an independent press still has a role in defending and improving Nepal's democratic system.

Sonia Awale

Pulse of the people

The monsoon has got bad press because Nepal’s tourism operators actively told visitors to avoid <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/managing-the-monsoon?%2F">the rainy season</a>. It is time to change that. The reason can be found right here in the vast alpine meadows of Central Nepal where this time of year you can walk on velvet grass of pastures abloom with delicate pink, red and yellow flowers as the mist rolls up the valley. There is no sound except the hum of bumble bees. &nbsp;&nbsp; There are dozens of places across high Nepal called Chaurikharka, which means yak pasture. But this particular Chaurikharka in Rukum East located at an altitude of 4,000m stands out for its serene beauty, rustic charm and bucolic setting. There is just the occasional chime of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/when-yaks-go-so-does-culture">yak bells</a> in the distance, and the sharp whistle of herders corralling sheep. &nbsp;&nbsp; The grass shoots are so fragile that one hesitates to step on them, the rounded ridges appear and quickly vanish in waves of mist. With the<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/before-the-next-monsoon"> arrival of monsoon</a>, these meadows are a soothing shade of green dotted with millions of <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/review/the-anatomy-of-a-flower?%2F=">multi-coloured flowers</a>. Until very recently, it took a week or so to hike up to places like Chaurikharka, but with the expansion of the road network even to these far-flung mountains in the lap of Dhaulagiri, they are much more accessible. It is just a three-hour uphill from the Mid-Hill Highway on the border between Baglung and Rukum East.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250802130828_a0b06b494d751b2144ffbbf10894ea64b29e8aed844bc8c66171783abfaf4e16.jpg" data-media-id="editor_4" data-image-id="20250802130828_a0b06b494d751b2144ffbbf10894ea64b29e8aed844bc8c66171783abfaf4e16" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1365" loading="lazy" alt="Visit Nepal in the monsoon"> </figure>  Purists would say that such easy access devalues the sanctity of these remote high meadows, but it also means more people will be moved to treasure the experience, appreciate <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/natures-fragile-gift-to-nepal">the value of nature </a>so they can take steps to protect it.&nbsp; To be sure, the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/deadly-monsoon-in-nepal-turns-deadlier">monsoon season can be challenging for road travel</a>. The roads are rough even at the best of times, and in the monsoon they become muddy and treacherous, often blocked by<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/monsoon-deluge-in-nepal"> landslides</a>. But that could be precisely the kind of adventure that the more intrepid visitors crave. Improved road connectivity has already made Chaurikharka and places like Badimallika &nbsp;and other sacred lakes in the mountains of western Nepal popular with domestic tourists. What is driving this traffic is the urge to go to exotic new places and share videos and selfies on social media. Several of Nepal’s travel vloggers have visited Chaurikharka and popularised the place, enticing followers on TikTok or YouTube to retrace their footsteps. But even as they become more popular, these fragile and once-remote places should be protected from over-tourism.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250731110736_f97110b7cdc3e7f80d5877690948fc9f4c95a09c583deb23b07355491e6c5446.jpg" data-media-id="editor_8" data-image-id="20250731110736_f97110b7cdc3e7f80d5877690948fc9f4c95a09c583deb23b07355491e6c5446" data-rendition-name="original" width="1083" height="699" loading="lazy" alt="Visit Nepal in the monsoon NT"> </figure>  <h2>INCREASING FOOTFALL</h2> Chaurikharka is located in Bhume Rural Municipality of East Rukum, near the scenic valley of Dhorpatan in Baglung district. Even in the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/monsoon-culture">middle of the monsoon</a>, there is a steady stream of Nepali hikers trooping to these high pastures – especially during festival days like Saune Sankranti which this year was on 17 July and actually marks the auspicious beginning of the monsoon here. “This year the rains have not been as heavy and there have been some clear mornings when we could see everything from Dhaulagiri to Machapuchre,” says Khageswar Bhandari, who trekked up here from the road. “The flowers, the greenery and the snowy mountain views make this an incredibly unique place.”&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250802130824_1b9e26f2e9853fdfe69154bb42a7c9ea6da4bf4940efc1da99b304dcfbd7d3d9.jpg" data-media-id="editor_10" data-image-id="20250802130824_1b9e26f2e9853fdfe69154bb42a7c9ea6da4bf4940efc1da99b304dcfbd7d3d9" data-rendition-name="original" width="2048" height="1152" loading="lazy" alt="Visit Nepal in the monsoon"> </figure>  Chaurikharka is worthwhile to get to in any season, but it has a different charm during the monsoon. Word has spread and because it is now easy to get to from Baglung or even Pokhara, people have been flocking here.&nbsp; “Holidays and Saturdays see the largest crowds, with up to 500 visitors every day,” says ward chair Mankaji Pun of Bhume.&nbsp; There was a time not too long ago when local herders brought sheep, goats, cows, buffaloes, horses, and mules to graze here during the monsoon. Although there are still livestock around, animals have been replaced by visitors taking selfies. Read also: <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/the-monsoon-and-nature-s-arithmetic">The monsoon, and nature’s arithmetic</a>, Tom Robertson Ward Chair Pun says infrastructure development is his main priority. A foot trail to Chaurikharka was built last year by the Tourism Division Office in Kohalpur, but access via the Raniwas-Koipa road section still remains challenging.&nbsp; “If we get more budget, we can improve the road and facilities to make Chaurikharka the main tourist attraction of this region,” says Bhume Municipality Chair Hom Prakash Shrestha. “After that, we hope to promote Chaurikharka as a top tourist spot.”&nbsp; Economic activity is also picking up with the arrival of visitors, but there seems to be a need to manage the makeshift sheds made of corrugated sheets that spoil the beauty of the place. Tea shops and lodges are also available but facilities are basic. Kuldeep Neupane took a three-day trip from Ghorahi in Dang to visit Chaurikharka recently, and says: “This is an ideal trip to make a quick getaway and let nature recharge your mind and body. And it is much more fun with a tent, to watch the sunrise over the Himalaya or the mist blowing in.”

Visit Nepal in the monsoon

The final investigation report on the crash of a Saurya Airlines jet on 24 July 2024 at Kathmandu airport has revealed flaws in the carrier’s technical operation procedures, poor monitoring by the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) and gaps in the airport’s emergency response. Eighteen people including a child were killed, and only the captain survived as the plane plunged seconds after takeoff, crashing within the airport perimeter. This was the latest in a series of aircraft accidents in previous years, and further tarnished Nepal’s already poor aviation safety record and contributed to the country being retained in the EU’s air safety list. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; The circumstances in the Saurya crash were different from the Yeti Airlines crash in Pokhara in January 2022 that killed all 72 on board, and two Tara Air crashes in February 2016 and May 2022 on approach to Jomsom that together claimed 45 lives. However, all four tragedies were a result of negligence of carriers and crew, failure to follow procedures, regulatory slackness, and overconfidence. The Saurya crash, especially, was a glaring example of how an ailing airline broke its own rules to allow passengers, including non-employees, a joy ride to Pokhara on a maintenance ferry flight. CRASH REPORT The Final Investigation Report prepared by the Aircraft Accident Investigation Commission and released on the first anniversary of the crash last week carried a long list of rules that were ignored or broken, and of regulatory failure. The first mistake was to cram spares, tools and inflammable chemicals needed for the aircraft’s C-Check in Pokhara into the cargo hold flouting its own ground handling procedures.&nbsp; There was no check-in of passengers, some of whom were not even employees – even though regulations say only flight and maintenance crew should be on board a maintenance positioning flight. Many brought their own luggage into the plane and stored it unsecured in the cabin. There was no flight attendant to give a safety briefing to passengers. The load and trim charts given to the flight crew were rough estimates, and the total takeoff weight of the plane was 18,300kg plus or minus 200 kg. That would still have been all right, but there was a glaring mistake in the speedchart Saurya pilots were using to calculate the minimum takeoff speed (known as VR), and it had been wrong ever since the 21-year-old aircraft entered service with the airline in 2017. FAULTY DATA&nbsp; The Commission probed Flight Data Recorder inputs from previous takeoffs of the Canadian-built CRJ200-LR in 2023-2024 and found that the undetected error in the speedchart had caused the plane to pitch up at an abnormal rotation rate at least 18 times on previous takeoffs.&nbsp; Any rotation rate more than 3°/sec is regarded as unusual. But on at least two occasions, this aircraft with tail number 9N-AME had rotation rates of 5.8°/sec and 5.5°/sec, the second one was when the pilot who survived was flying in March 2024.&nbsp; On this particular day, the plane’s rotation rate was 6.5°/sec, causing it to go into a deep stall soon after takeoff, the Commission report said. Essentially, the plane was not flying fast enough down the runway to take off safely.&nbsp; It is not yet clear whether excess weight, unsecured luggage, wrong centre of gravity were also factors, but relying on a faulty speedchart for the given takeoff weight, the captain flying pulled back on the yoke before the plane had reached takeoff speed and at a pitch angle that was too steep. The investigation report says the plane then went into a deep stall and started banking right with the stick shaking. At this point, the flight officer on the right hand seat is heard on the cockpit voice recorder saying: “Whoa, whoa, whoa. Sir, Sir, Sir…” It then banked left before the pilot flying turned the plane sharply to the right again in an evasive action to avoid the parking aprons of the international and domestic terminals. Had he not done so, there would have been a disaster of a much greater magnitude at Kathmandu airport that day. The plane scraped the runway with its right wingtip, collided with a container having helicopter spare parts, and plunged into a gully east of the runway, exploding in a fireball. The investigation also noted that the impact forces seemed to be survivable for some occupants. The fire trucks took unnecessarily long to reach the site even though it was inside the airport perimeter. The absence of an ICAO-standard runway strip, inadequate rescue drills, lack of training, and a blocked emergency service gate leading to the crash site were cited as other factors. &nbsp;&nbsp; <h2>Timestamp of a Disaster</h2>  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250731110724_39cdd04693994ce6e55a5b302905c0fa4884fe85bed21ff0779bb1439f3a5725.jpg" data-media-id="editor_0" data-image-id="20250731110724_39cdd04693994ce6e55a5b302905c0fa4884fe85bed21ff0779bb1439f3a5725" data-rendition-name="original" width="778" height="826" loading="lazy" alt="Flouting rules caused Saurya tragedy NT"> </figure>  11:10:34 - The Saurya Airlines CRJ200 on the takeoff roll from runway 02. It had a takeoff weight of about 18,300kg, but the pilot’s speedcard had a previously undetected mistake about the minimum takeoff speed. 11:10:55 -The plane with tail number 9N-AME goes into deep stall soon after takeoff because it does not have enough speed to lift its weight. The plane also has an abnormally steep nose-up attitude.&nbsp; 11:11:03 - Without enough speed to generate lift, the plane banks right, then left and right again in CCTV photos taken from the domestic apron (below). If it had not banked right, it could have hit the aprons and terminal buildings. Seen parked is Saurya’s other CRJ200 with tail number 9N-ANM.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/20250731110732_608132f7225c649125cca2691dd6a6bf930984c5b359e888d7ad9e5eacce3afd.jpg" data-media-id="editor_1" data-image-id="20250731110732_608132f7225c649125cca2691dd6a6bf930984c5b359e888d7ad9e5eacce3afd" data-rendition-name="original" width="770" height="555" loading="lazy" alt="Flouting rules caused Saurya tragedy NT"> </figure>  11:11:08 - The plane scrapes the runway with its right wingtip, and falls into the gully. The captain is thrown off the left side of the cockpit and survives. 11:11:15: Plane explodes in a fireball inside the airport perimeter. Firefighters take time to reach the site because of lack of access road and a blocked gate. Read the full investigation report <a href="https://www.tourism.gov.np/files/9N-AME%20AIC%20Final%20Report.pdf">here</a>.

Flouting rules caused Saurya tragedy

French citizen Louis arrived in Nepal for the first time earlier this year, planning to <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/the-abcs-of-a-winter-trek-in-nepal">trek the Annapurna Circuit </a>before heading down to Bardia to hopefully catch a glimpse of some<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/nepal-counting-its-tigers"> tigers</a>. Before he began his journey from Besisahar, Louis (who only revealed his first name) had imagined breathing crisp mountain air, and following the melodious gurgle of the Marsyangdi.&nbsp; Instead, he had to breathe fumes and dust all the way to Chame. Louis says he masked his face with a handkerchief: “It was not what I expected, this is not right.”  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025080304080_f03fce1527cf8a63178e4e82589a1a7096c8cfa28893ca4a5f7fe82d91a6e38a.jpg" data-media-id="editor_2" data-image-id="2025080304080_f03fce1527cf8a63178e4e82589a1a7096c8cfa28893ca4a5f7fe82d91a6e38a" data-rendition-name="original" width="2419" height="1814" loading="lazy" alt="Manang trails NT 1"> </figure>  Many other trekkers are similarly disappointed as roads have been built along what used to be <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/a-walk-back-in-time-chandragiri-hatiban">walking trails</a>. Manang and Humla are the last remote regions in the Himalaya to be connected to the national road network. &nbsp;Construction of the 87km Besisahar-Manang road began in 1994, but was stalled during <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/14-years-after-conflict-no-closure-in-nepal">the Maoist conflic</a>t, and finally finished in 2012.&nbsp; Most of it has not yet been blacktopped, and sections have been carved out of vertical cliff faces, making them treacherous. But it has allowed road access to Manang, a journey that previously took a week on foot.&nbsp;  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025080304084_32b3ca875a0df9f1dd42dbe915e6f6a2cd4f2e53f1cf2d3ee5cbdb3435905000.jpg" data-media-id="editor_5" data-image-id="2025080304084_32b3ca875a0df9f1dd42dbe915e6f6a2cd4f2e53f1cf2d3ee5cbdb3435905000" data-rendition-name="original" width="2400" height="1505" loading="lazy" alt="Manang trails NT 1"> </figure>  While the <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/the-road-out-of-nepal">road has improved access</a>, it has impacted on<a href="https://nepalitimes.com/here-now/trekking-in-the-time-of-climate-change"> trekking tourism </a>— the mainstay of Manang’s economy. The number of tourists visiting the scenic valley behind the Annapurnas grew from 21,245 in 2023 to 30,866 in 2024. The Annapurna Circuit is known for unique sights like <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=9194">Tilicho</a>, one of the highest lakes in the world, the Thorong La pass that connects Manang to Mustang, and the valley’s own rich cultural heritage. Thorong La at 5,416m is the highest hiking pass in the world, and was used by locals for trade with Mustang before it became a <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/opinion/comment/lift-restrictions-on-upper-mustang">popular trekking route</a>. &nbsp; “For guests, the excitement of reaching Thorong La is now overshadowed by their disappointment of having to journey through dusty roads to get there,” says Manang lodge-owner Ongma Gurung. “That is the complaint we get the most.” <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/banner/tourism-that-treads-lightly-on-the-land">Local tourism </a>operators are trying to get the government to build alternative foot trails. But there have been delays due to a lack of budget.  <figure> <img src="https://publisher-publish.s3.eu-central-1.amazonaws.com/pb-nepalitimes/swp/asv65r/media/2025080304084_c5f76e398182785bb17846a148e3ca89de5687b4623580f8e2d725a7a287edfa.jpg" data-media-id="editor_11" data-image-id="2025080304084_c5f76e398182785bb17846a148e3ca89de5687b4623580f8e2d725a7a287edfa" data-rendition-name="original" width="2419" height="1762" loading="lazy" alt="Manang trails"> </figure>  The Naso Rural Municipality has identified other routes along the Annapurna Circuit in Chyamche, Tal, and Khotro so trekkers can bypass heavy vehicles involved in the construction of the Manang-Marsyangdi Hydropower Project. “But the local government cannot do everything,” admits the chair Dhan Bahadur Gurung. “And for leaders in Kathmandu, Manang is out of sight and out of mind.” Munindra Jung Gurung represents Manang in the Gandaki Provincial Assembly, and says he has raised the issue in <a href="https://nepalitimes.com/news/pokhara-s-tourism-woes">Pokhara</a>. He is hopeful there will be a hearing. To be sure, the road is not all bad news. Locals benefit, the number of visitors has grown, and trekkers can now also save time and use it to explore <a href="https://archive.nepalitimes.com/news.php?id=5960">side valleys in Manang</a>, visiting the villages like Nar and Phu. Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA) chief Rabin Kadariya concedes that the road to Upper Manang was crucial to connect the remote region with the rest of Nepal, but adds: “We have built an alternative trail connecting Talgaun, and we will consult local communities about their priorities on other hiking trails.”&nbsp;

Trailing off in Manang

American artist Peter Makela was in Nepal in 2022 on a Fulbright scholarship when he experienced the Matya festival in Patan in which devotees made the rounds of the city’s shrines.&nbsp;
He joined the procession, walking through 2,600 stupa and 140 bahal of the town. That immersion left a lasting impression.
As part of Gallery Mcube’s international residency program in Patan, he put his inspiration to canvas in the exhibition Yala Yatra: Walking, Working, Worshipping. The exhibition also coincides with this month’s Matya festival.&nbsp;
Makela has visited Nepal often in the past 11 years but he mostly stayed in and spent his time around Boudha. “This time I stayed in Patan, put the sites I wanted to visit on my map, and off I went,” he tells us. “Each of my artwork is inspired by the stupas and shrines in Patan that I visited.”
The stupa and Ganesh are recurring motifs in his watercolours, and the elephant gods are located in chaityas — reflecting the interplay and blending of the Hindu and Buddhist faiths in Kathmandu Valley.&nbsp;
The stupas and Ganesh are painted in vivid red, yellow, blue and green against abstract backgrounds meant to represent the sky.
“I use the sky as a backdrop because the sky has no border,” says Makela. “The four colours represent the four elements, the different Buddha families and also lights bouncing off of a rainbow.”
The use of just four colours for all the artwork stands out, and combined with the absence of heavy canvases, frames or stands render Makela’s art striking in its simplicity.&nbsp;
The Ganesh is always holding something and the art also portrays the elephant god’s sacred vehicle, the mouse.
While his vibrant stupas and Ganesh reflect the tangibility of Patan’s tradition and heritage, it is as if the backdrops with their shades of grey and red and yellow capture the soul of the city’s shrines.
“If you look closely, there is a sense of form and formlessness at the same time,” he says.&nbsp;
Makela walked 108 kora around the shrines during his exploration of the town, and in the process developed a spiritual connection with Patan’s heritage and traditions.&nbsp;
The exhibition connects with visitors on a deeper, more spiritual, level as well. And with it, they feel a sense of pride as well as the need to urgently preserve Patan’s heritage for future generations.
“Peter’s inclination and approach towards Nepali art and culture is fascinating, and it reflects in his work,” says Mcube curator Manish Lal Shrestha, whose international artist residency program promotes Nepal’s cultural heritage. &nbsp;&nbsp;
Yala Yatra: Walking, Working, Worshipping
1-5 August&nbsp;
10AM-7PM
Gallery Mcube, Patan

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