Youth Surge in Nepal's House of Representatives Election; Eight Under-30s Elected

Kathmandu. The interim government formed on the foundation of the Gen-Z movement has largely completed the House of Representatives elections. Results for the first-past-the-post system have been announced for most constituencies, while the counting for proportional representation is also underway.

This election has seen the youth generation directly elected to parliament in significant numbers. In the election held on Falgun 21, eight youths under the age of 30 were directly elected. Seven of the elected members are from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), and one is from the Labor Culture Party led by Harka Sampang.

The elected members include RSP's Prashant Upreti, 25, KP Khanal and Manish Khanal, 26, Bablu Gupta, Sulabh Pokhrel, and Sasmita Pokhrel, 28. Additionally, Nisha Dangi, 29, was also elected.

Furthermore, Aren Rai of the Labor Culture Party, aged 29, was elected from Khotang-1. According to the election results, Nisha Dangi was elected from Jhapa-1, securing 45,680 votes, while her closest competitor, Keshav Raj Pandey of the Nepali Congress, received only 10,550 votes. Manish Khanal, elected from Nawalpur-2, secured 41,347 votes, while CPN-UML's Til Bahadur Mahat Chhetri was limited to 15,755 votes.

Similarly, Bablu Gupta won from Siraha-1 with 41,322 votes, and Sasmita Pokhrel received 30,737 votes from Kathmandu-5. Prashant Upreti was elected from Makwanpur-2 with 30,050 votes, and KP Khanal from Kailali-2 with 20,057 votes. In Rupandehi-2, RSP's Sulabh Kharel defeated influential CPN-UML leader Bishnu Paudel by a massive margin of 43,689 votes. Kharel received 56,550 votes, while Paudel received only 12,861 votes. Aren Rai from Khotang won with 16,612 votes.

Prashant Upreti

Born on Jestha 10, 2057, in Makwanpur, Prashant Upreti is a tourism entrepreneur by profession. He is the youngest parliamentarian directly elected in this election. Upreti, who holds a bachelor's degree in Tourism Management, is currently pursuing a master's degree in Leadership and Management at Kathmandu University. He is considered close to Bhupdev Shah, a secretariat member of Kathmandu Metropolitan City's former Mayor Balen Shah. After his son entered politics, his father, Ramchandra Upreti, also left the CPN-UML to support him.

KP Khanal

KP Khanal is a nationally recognized name as a social activist. Born in 2056 BS in Ramaroshan Rural Municipality, Achham, Khanal is particularly known as a sanitation activist. Elected from Kailali-2 on behalf of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Khanal is considered a close associate of the party's senior leader, Balen Shah. Under the slogan 'I change, my country changes,' he initiated a wave of cleanliness in Kathmandu through the 'Clean Kathmandu' campaign. Khanal, who started working at a local radio station while in the 7th grade, has been active in social work since the age of 17. Under his leadership, an orphanage for children was built in Bajura.

Sasmita Pokhrel

Sasmita Pokhrel, 29, elected from Kathmandu Constituency No. 5, holds a bachelor's degree in Law and is a prominent advocate for alternative politics. Born in 2052 BS, Pokhrel completed his high school education in the United States and returned to Nepal to complete his BA LLB from Kathmandu University. Active in relief collection during the 2072 earthquake, he joined politics through the Bibeksheel campaign. He played a crucial role as an education support expert in the team of Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah. He took the lead in implementing programs such as scholarship distribution in community schools, 'Book Free Friday,' and smart boards. He enters parliament with the goal of translating his local level experience into national policy making.

Nisha Dangi

Nisha Dangi, 29, elected with a large mandate from Jhapa Constituency No. 1, was previously a proportional representation member of parliament in 2079 BS. Born in 2053 BS in Bhadrapur, Jhapa, she holds a bachelor's degree in Social Work and a master's degree in Journalism. Before entering politics, Dangi was active in journalism for about five years. In the previous parliament, she gained recognition for strongly raising the demands and issues of the 'Gen-Z' generation. Having also served as the whip for the RSP, she has now been directly elected this time. She is viewed in Jhapa as a strong voice for the younger generation and a carrier of new political culture.

Sulabh Kharel

Sulabh Kharel, 26, who gained prominence by defeating influential leader Bishnu Paudel in Rupandehi-2, is an advocate by profession. A permanent resident of Butwal-16, he holds a BA LLB from Nepal Law College and a master's degree in Constitutional Law from the US. He was known as the youngest petitioner in the writ filed against the dissolution of parliament by then-Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. Kharel, who provides legal consultation to RSP Chairman Rabi Lamichhane, has also been in the spotlight due to some controversial statements, although he claims the allegations against him are false. Advocating strongly against corruption and for the rule of law, he secured a seat in parliament on his first attempt.

Manish Khanal

Manish Khanal, 26, elected from Nawalpur Constituency No. 2, is a youth who began his political journey with the Bibeksheel Nepali Dal. Born in Ashar, 2056 BS, Khanal holds a bachelor's degree in Law from Nepal Law College. Active in street protests for social and political justice, he has also served as the private secretary to RSP MP Asim Shah. Khanal, who became the youngest central member of Bibeksheel in 2076 BS, plans to play an active role in lawmaking in the house, given his background as a law student. He has made the spirit of the Gen-Z uprising, transparency, and accountability his main political issues.

Bablu Gupta

Bablu Gupta, 28, elected from Siraha Constituency No. 1, is a permanent resident of Lahan. Having completed his bachelor's level studies, Gupta has been dedicated to social service since his student life. He gained attention by running 'The Hundred' campaign and especially by assisting those cheated in foreign employment and running a free food campaign during the COVID-19 pandemic. During the Gen-Z movement, he even served as the Minister of Youth and Sports. In his short tenure, he initiated efforts for the transfer of land ownership for the Lahan hospital and the reconstruction of the Kamala Bridge.

Aren Rai

Aren Rai, 29, elected from Khotang-1, is an influential young leader of the Labor Culture Party. Born in 2053 BS, Rai has completed his bachelor's level studies. He started his political journey with the Maoists in 2068 BS, later joining the Mongol National Organization before finally joining Harka Sampang's Labor Culture Party. He was once embroiled in controversy for stating that this country belongs only to the indigenous Mongols and that Bahun-Chhetri people should be driven out.