Ex-Rapper Balendra Shah Sworn Nepal’s New Prime Minister After Election Victory

Balendra Shah sworn in as Nepal’s new prime minister. His Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) won 182 seats in March 5th election, first vote after anti-corruption Gen Z protests that killed 76 people in September last year.

35-year-old Shah, Nepal’s youngest prime minister in decades and the first Madhesi to lead, was sworn in at President House with diplomats and senior government officials present. Political analyst Puranjan Acharya says new government’s test is transparent service delivery for citizens expecting good governance from day one.

Shah faces early challenge of implementing report on violence during anti-corruption protests, which recommends prosecution of those responsible for crackdown, including former Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli. Protests were driven by lack of jobs and endemic corruption in Nepal, home to 30 million people with a fifth living in poverty and an estimated 1,500 leaving daily for work abroad.

Political instability has been rampant since 1990, with 32 governments taking office but none completing five-year terms. Nepal’s Congress party came second in parliament with 38 seats, Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) led by Oli controls 25 members. Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki led nation through interim period to parliamentary election.