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Rapper-Turned-Mayor's Party Storms Nepal Polls, Set for Landslide Win

The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), associated with former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, is heading for a landslide victory in Nepal's parliamentary elections. The party has officially won 19 seats and is leading in 98 others as vote counting continues. Major established parties like the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML are trailing far behind in the tally. RSP leadership confidently predicts securing an absolute two-thirds majority of 186 seats in the 275-member lower house.

Key Points: Nepal Election: Balen Shah's RSP Heads for Landslide Victory

  • RSP leads in 98 seats
  • Wins 19 declared seats
  • Needs 138 for single-party govt
  • Trailing major parties like Nepali Congress
3 min read

Balendra Shah-led RSP maintains wide margin as it heads for landslide victory in Nepal's parliamentary elections

Former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah's Rastriya Swatantra Party leads in 98 seats, wins 19, heading for a landslide in Nepal's parliamentary elections.

"One hundred and eighty-six. Yes, in total we are expecting one hundred and eighty-six seats in total. - Dol Prasad Aryal, RSP Vice-President"

Kathmandu, March 7

Former Kathmandu mayor and rapper Balendra Shah-associated Rastriya Swatantra Party, continued to maintain a wide margin in the ongoing vote count. It is headed for a landslide victory in Thursday's parliamentary polls as it is already leading in 98 seats, with wins in 19 seats officially declared.

As per the Election Commission, vote counting is underway in 135 constituencies out of the 165 under the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) category, as of Saturday morning.

In the count, Balen's RSP is taking the lead as it has won 19 seats out of the 27 constituencies where the vote count under FPTP is already over.

Vote counting is yet to start in three constituencies due to various reasons.

As of 8 AM (NST), Balen's RSP has emerged victorious in 19 seats while maintaining leads in 98 seats.

The Nepali Congress is in second place with four wins and leads in 11 seats, while the KP Sharma Oli-led CPN-UML (Communist Party of Nepal - Unified Marxist Leninist) has so far won one seat while maintaining leads in 11 places.

The Nepali Communist Party (NCP) has also won one seat so far while maintaining leads in 11 seats.

In Jhapa-5, Balendra Shah (Balen) is ahead of contender KP Sharma Oli by almost four times the votes.

As per the Election Commission (till 8 AM), Shah has secured 34,863 votes while Oli is trailing with 9,068 votes.

In Sarlahi-4, Nepali Congress President Gagan Kumar Thapa is trailing behind RSP's Amreshkumar Singh.

As per the latest count, Singh has secured 11,383 votes while Thapa is behind with 6,952 votes.

A total of 68 parties are in the fray in the March 5 election, with 3,406 candidates contesting under FPTP and 1,270 under the Proportional Representation (PR) category.

There are a total of 110 seats under the PR category for which voters had cast their ballots separately on March 5.

To form a single-party government, 138 seats are required in the lower house out of the 275 existing seats.

With the vote count underway mainly for the FPTP category, Balen's RSP is expected to cross the simple majority mark.

However, party vice-president Dol Prasad Aryal, in an interview with ANI on Friday, claimed the party would secure an absolute two-thirds majority.

"One hundred and eight six. Yes, in total we are expecting one hundred and eighty-six seats in total," Aryal told ANI as he exited a counting centre on the outskirts of Kathmandu on Friday afternoon when asked about the number of seats they were expecting to win.

A political party will need 186 seats to claim a two-thirds majority.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

P
Priya S
Wow! Leading by such a huge margin against veteran leaders like KP Oli. The people have spoken clearly for change. Hope this brings good governance and strengthens India-Nepal ties, which is crucial for both our economies.
R
Rohit P
Interesting to see a non-traditional party rise so fast. But a word of caution – landslide victories are great, but delivering on promises is the real test. Hope they focus on development and not populist measures.
S
Sarah B
As an observer, this feels like a political earthquake. Beating established parties so decisively means public frustration was very high. The claim of expecting 186 seats is incredibly ambitious!
V
Vikram M
A rapper turned politician leading in votes against a former PM by almost 4 times? Only in democracy! Jai ho. Hope this energy translates into tackling corruption and creating jobs for Nepali youth.
K
Karthik V
While the victory seems massive, I hope the new leadership remembers its responsibilities. A stable and prosperous Nepal is in India's direct interest. Our connectivity projects and trade depend on it. Fingers crossed for positive relations.
N
Nikhil C
Respectfully, such a sweeping mandate can sometimes lead to overconfidence. The party must now focus on inclusive governance and not ignore

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