Rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah was sworn in as Nepal’s prime minister on Friday, making history as the youngest leader to be democratically elected to the top office of the Himalayan nation, around six months after the dramatic collapse of the KP Sharma Oli government in an unprecedented youth movement.
The 35-year-old Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) leader, popularly known as 'Balen', was sworn in by President Ram Chandra Paudel at a ceremony at the President's Office. The RSP had registered a landslide victory in this month's parliamentary elections.
Shah, a former mayor of Kathmandu, is the youngest leader to be democratically elected to the top office in the Himalayan nation. He is also the first person from the Madhes region to become the prime minister.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted Shah shortly after the swearing-in ceremony and said he was looking forward to working closely with his Nepalese counterpart to take forward India-Nepal ties.
“Your appointment reflects the trust reposed in your leadership by the people of Nepal. I look forward to working closely with you to take India-Nepal friendship and cooperation to even greater heights for the mutual benefit of our two peoples,” PM Modi posted on X.
Nepal is important for India in the context of its overall strategic interests in the region, and leaders of the two countries have often noted the age-old "Roti Beti" relationship.
Land-locked Nepal relies heavily on India for the transportation of goods and services. Nepal's access to the sea is through India, and it imports a predominant proportion of its requirements from and through India.
Balen is the first democratically elected prime minister to be sworn in since the coalition government led by former prime minister Oli was ousted in September last year, following the youth-led Gen Z protest against corruption, nepotism, and a social media ban that escalated into violence.
Following Oli's ouster, former chief justice Sushila Karki took charge as the interim prime minister on the recommendation of the Gen Z group.
Balen was a popular choice to lead the interim government, but declined, saying he would rather head the government by contesting the parliamentary election for a full term.
“Congratulations to the newly appointed Prime Minister, Balendra Shah. I feel all the more elated that a 35-year-old young man is my successor. I extend my best wishes to him. I wish him success in pushing forward the people's mandate with vigour and rigour,” Karki posted on X after the ceremony.
Apart from Balen, other ministers also took the oath at the ceremony on Friday.
Swarnim Wagle took the oath as the Minister of Finance, Shisir Khanal as Minister for Foreign Affairs, and Sudan Gurung as Minister for Home Affairs.
Balen will hold the portfolios of the Defence Ministry and the Industry, Commerce and Supplies Ministry.
Biraj Bhakta Shrestha will oversee the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources, and Irrigation, and Bikram Timilsina will serve as Minister for Communications and Information Technology.
Pratibha Rawal was appointed Minister of Federal Affairs and General Administration, Ganesh Paudel as Minister of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, and Sunil Lamsal as Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport.
Similarly, Gita Chaudhary took oath as Agriculture and Livestock Development Minister, Sasmit Pokharel as Minister for Education, Science, and Technology, Nisha Mehata as Minister for Health and Population, Sita Badi as Minister of Women, Children, and Senior Citizens, and Sobita Gautam as Minister for Law, Justice, and Parliamentary Affairs.
In the March 5 general elections, Balen defeated four-time prime minister Sharma Oli by a huge margin in the Jhapa-5 constituency, a long-standing stronghold of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist).
The RSP won a landslide victory in the March 5 poll, securing a massive 182 seats out of the total 275 seats in the House of Representatives (HoR), making it eligible to form a majority government.
Balen and the RSP tsunami almost wiped out the traditional parties, with the Nepali Congress winning only 38 seats, followed by the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML) with 25, and the Nepali Communist Party getting only 17 seats.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif congratulated Shah for his party’s landslide victory.
China has also congratulated Shah on his appointment saying it is “Ready to work with Nepal’s new government to further strengthen traditional friendship and practical cooperation,” China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian posted on X.
Balen is the youngest democratically elected prime minister of the Himalayan nation. Before him, a few young leaders were nominated or appointed, but they were not democratically elected.
Like Tulsi Giri, who was nominated in 1963 as the chair of the council of ministers, a position that was equivalent to that of prime minister by the then-king, was around 37 years old when he took charge.
Significantly, he was not elected but nominated by King Mahendra Shah.
