Local Representatives Under Siege: Rising Threats from Self-Proclaimed 'New Forces'

Kathmandu. Local levels are the primary venues for implementing the concept of 'Singha Durbar in every village,' as envisioned by the Constitution of Nepal. However, the representatives running this 'Singha Durbar' have recently become targets of various unknown and self-proclaimed groups.

The associations and federations of local levels have reported a frightening increase in threats, verbal abuse, and warnings of physical attacks against mayors, deputy mayors, and staff under various names and guises such as 'GenZ,' 'New Force,' and 'Transformative Youth.'

This has not only affected the performance of local governments but has also left representatives mentally and physically terrorized.

Threats

In the month of Kartik, Lokendra Rai, the chairman of Diprung Chuichumma Rural Municipality in Khotang, faced unimaginable harassment. He began receiving calls from an unknown number in the middle of the night. The caller, identifying himself as a member of 'GenZ,' began using obscene language and threatening Chairman Rai's life.

It was revealed that the person making the threats was Yubaraj Karki, a teacher working at Siddhavati Secondary School in Triyuga Municipality-15, Udayapur district. According to Chairman Rai, Karki terrorized him by saying, 'I will beat you wherever I find you, I will finish you off.'

Chairman Rai says, 'It is not a normal matter for a person in a responsible position like a teacher to call in the middle of the night, claim to be 'GenZ,' use profanity, and threaten to take a life.' Feeling insecure, Rai filed a complaint for action with the Triyuga Municipality and the District Administration Office, Udayapur.

Advocate Bhim Dahal states that some have begun using the term 'GenZ,' which is popular on social media, as a 'weapon' to spread chaos and intimidate representatives. 'Anyone has the right to express their dissatisfaction, but criminal methods should not be adopted in its name. That is against the law. There are complaints that such incidents are increasing recently. The government should pay attention to this in time,' said Dahal.

A mayor of a municipality shares his pain, 'Some youths come, calling themselves carriers of new ideas. They demand information that cannot be provided or pressure us to immediately implement plans that are not even in the budget book. If they don't get the requested information exactly when they want it, they immediately label us as corrupt.'

Meanwhile, Nim Bahadur KC, the chairman of Darma Rural Municipality in Salyan, faced a similar fate. He was not pressured due to dissatisfaction with any development work or policy disagreement. He was directly threatened in the name of 'GenZ' to resign and leave the municipality immediately. The threat given to Chairman KC had no concrete agenda, only an anarchic demand to leave power and the chair in the name of a 'New Force.'

'Blackmailing' in the Name of Right to Information

According to the National Association of Rural Municipalities and the Municipal Association of Nepal, a common problem has emerged in local levels across the country: 'harassment in the name of the Right to Information.' A mayor of a municipality shares his pain, 'Some youths come, calling themselves carriers of new ideas. They demand information that cannot be provided or pressure us to immediately implement plans that are not even in the budget book. If they don't get the requested information exactly when they want it, they immediately label us as corrupt.'

According to that mayor, in many cases, the purpose of requesting information is not transparency but to put mental pressure on representatives to fulfill their own interests. 'There is an active gang that forces the inclusion of plans not in the budget, tries to insert their own people into contracts, and if that fails, assassinates character on social media,' he added.

A New Form of Anarchy: Verbal Abuse and Humiliation in the Field

According to another rural municipality chairman, it has become difficult to go to the village to work these days. 'Some youths give suggestions for positive change, which is welcome. But most come with the intention of causing trouble,' he said.

According to him, when going to the field to monitor development work, the trend of publicly abusing them as 'lazy,' taking videos to make them a laughing stock on social media, and even acquaintances becoming anarchic has increased. 'Every day they come to submit a new statement, which contains impossible demands. This is a type of 'intentional' harassment,' the chairman complained.

Collective Protest by Representatives

The National Association of Rural Municipalities in Nepal has expressed serious objection to this anarchy and insecurity in local levels. After its meeting held in Kakani, Nuwakot, the federation issued the 'Kakani Declaration,' drawing the state's attention to such activities.

The declaration states, 'In the name of a new force, unnecessary pressure is being created at the local level, representatives are being discouraged, threats are being made by demanding impossible information, and insecurity is increasing among staff. Such wrong activities have lowered the prestige of local government and weakened democracy.'

The federation has urged the concerned parties to stop such anarchic acts immediately and to present their demands only according to legal methods. Additionally, a demand has been made to the Ministry of Home Affairs to guarantee the security of representatives.

Local levels are currently under double pressure. On one hand, the federal government (Singha Durbar) is trying to keep power in its grip and attempting to intervene by making various laws, while on the other hand, anarchy is flourishing in the name of 'New Force' and 'GenZ' in villages, according to the Rural Municipality Federation and the Municipal Association of Nepal.

The federation has urged the concerned parties to stop such anarchic acts immediately and to present their demands only according to legal methods. Additionally, a demand has been made to the Ministry of Home Affairs to guarantee the security of representatives.

'We are caught in a double squeeze,' says one representative, 'Budget and authority are cut from above, and anarchic groups do not let us work from below. There is a danger that the very foundation of federalism will be shaken.'

No Excuse for Anarchy in the Name of GenZ

Even those who participated in the GenZ movement are calling the current activities anarchic. Activist Manoj Nepali, who participated in the GenZ movement, says, 'The local level is the government closest to the people. Even the smallest obstacles here directly affect service delivery to the general public. Representatives should keep a record of those who misuse the name of GenZ on social media.'

Nepali says that if someone takes a letterhead claiming to be GenZ for wrong purposes or goes in a mob to threaten, representatives should 'expose' their names. 'But it has also been found that youths who go with legitimate demands are belittled by being called GenZ. Both are wrong. We have heard that local representatives do not even want to hear the word GenZ, so we have to look at it from both sides,' he says.

Youth activist Prasuj Mainali says, 'Youths should ask questions, oppose corruption; that is a beautiful aspect of democracy. But threatening in the name of asking questions, warning to kill, and declaring someone corrupt without evidence is a crime. This is defaming the actual youth movement itself.'

He also said that it is frightening that youths are forgetting their duties while exercising their rights. Advocate Dahal says that local level representatives should keep evidence of such incidents and proceed legally. 'It is not about just saying threats were made. One should keep evidence and take legal action,' says Dahal.