{"id":94157,"date":"2026-07-05T13:05:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-05T07:20:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/?p=94157"},"modified":"2026-07-05T13:10:05","modified_gmt":"2026-07-05T07:25:05","slug":"the-rise-of-a-new-force-and-the-power-struggle-in-parliament-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.kalopati.com\/news\/94157","title":{"rendered":"The Rise of a New Force and the Power Struggle in Parliament"},"content":{"rendered":"

The stage of Nepali politics has reached a new and complex juncture<\/span>, <\/span>} where there is a sharp clash between the credibility of traditional politics and the aggressive working style of the newly emerged forces.TAG_OPEN_span_158 Balendra Shah (Balen) <\/span>, <\/span>}, who entered the parliament from the social campaign of Dharan, Harka Sampang<\/span>, <\/span>} and Finance Minister Dr. Baburam Shrestha, who has taken the reins of policy formulation with global knowledge of the economy, has taken the reins of policy-making. Swarnim Wagle is at the center of the debate in the parliament right now. Parliament is not only a place to make laws, TAG_OPEN_span_150 TAG_CLOSE_span_151 TAG_OPEN_span_151 TAG_CLOSE_span_152 but it is also a place of serious debate on national sovereignty and public concerns. However, the kind of statements and counter-accusations that are being heard in the parliament in the last few weeks{{TAG_OPEN_span_148 TAG_CLOSE_span_149 TAG_OPEN_span_149 TAG_CLOSE_span_150 TAG_CLOSE_span_148}}, <\/span> on the one hand and on the other have raised serious questions on the diplomatic and parliamentary decorum. <\/span><\/p>\n

May 17: The Prime Minister’s Unexpected Confession<\/b><\/p>\n

TAG_OPEN_span_145 The chain of events begins on May TAG_OPEN_span_143 TAG_CLOSE_span_144 TAG_OPEN_span_144 TAG_CLOSE_span_145 30 when Prime Minister Balendra Shah was responding to the questions raised by lawmakers in the House of Representatives. In Nepal’s politics, the issue of border has always been the first test of nationality. But <\/span>, <\/span>} Prime Minister Balen stood on the rostrum of the parliament and said <\/span>, <\/span>}, which shocked not only the ruling party and the opposition but also <\/span>, <\/span>{{TAG_OPEN_span_137}. TAG_OPEN_span_135 TAG_CLOSE_span_136 TAG_OPEN_span_136 TAG_CLOSE_span_137″After I became the Prime Minister, I came to know <\/span>, <\/span> not only India, but Nepal also encroached upon India’s land. There was silence in the parliament at his claim. At a time when Nepal has already issued a new map including Limpiyadhura <\/span>, <\/span>} and is fighting a diplomatic battle with India for the return of its land, many people have taken the statement of the country’s executive chief that “Nepal has also encroached on its land” at a sensitive time. Voices of protest started being heard from that day saying that this statement could weaken Nepal’s position in the international forum. <\/span><\/p>\n

Border politics and diplomatic decorum{<\/b><\/p>\n

}<\/p>\n

The reason why this statement of Prime Minister Shah became controversial is that <\/span>, <\/span> border dispute is a matter to be resolved on the basis of facts <\/span>, <\/span> historical documents and evidences such as the Sugauli Treaty.TAG_OPEN_span_130 The opponents argue that the Prime Minister’s statement that “Nepal has also encroached on its land” means indirectly bolstering India’s claim. At a time when Nepal has been demanding the withdrawal of Indian troops from the Kalapani area for a long time, the Prime Minister’s statement is sure to reduce Nepal’s bargaining power in diplomatic talks. While Balen tries to portray himself as a “partisan of the truth”, he does not seem to have paid attention to the long-term impact of statements made by a person in high positions of state. Speaking on a sensitive issue like the border without any concrete evidence and without analyzing the map has raised questions on national security and integrity. <\/span><\/p>\n

UK entry into a tripartite dialogue: a new debate<\/b><\/p>\n

On the same day, Prime Minister Balan introduced a new proposal in the parliament <\/span>, <\/span>}, which sparked a new debate in diplomatic circles.TAG_OPEN_span_125 He said that he has started talks not only with India and China but also with the UK to resolve the border dispute. The Prime Minister argued that British India was present at the time of the Sugauli Treaty and its successor was also Britain, so it would also be concerned in resolving this problem. He said, <\/span>, “<\/span>} We believe that England should also be concerned about the problems that are still being faced when they left British India. Although the original copy of the Sugauli Treaty and the maps of that time are preserved in the British Library<\/span>, <\/span>}, politicians are divided on how wise it is to invite a third party (Britain) in Nepal’s internal and bilateral border disputes. It internationalizes diplomacy<\/span>, <\/span>}, but there is also the risk that the solution could become more complicated. <\/span><\/p>\n

Hark Sampang’s stance and correction of parliamentary record<\/b><\/p>\n

Harka Sampang, chairman of the Labour and Culture Party and lawmaker of the Labour and Culture Party, is now protesting in the parliament over the Prime Minister’s statement on the border.TAG_OPEN_span_116 Sampang has made it his main agenda to demand that the prime minister’s remarks be immediately removed from the parliamentary record. Speaking at an emergency meeting of the House of Representatives on Monday, Sampang drew the Speaker’s attention. He said, <\/span>, “<\/span>} We demanded that the statement made by the Prime Minister be removed from the record of the Parliament. We are eagerly waiting for the Speaker to order its removal. Sampang argues that such things in the records of the parliament <\/span>, <\/span>} will become history for future generations, and that India can present these records as evidence in the international court or diplomatic table tomorrow. Therefore, there is no alternative to removing this section <\/span>, <\/span>} which is against the national interest. <\/span><\/p>\n

June 28: Finance Minister Wagle’s ‘File Card’ and Earthquake in Parliament <\/b><\/p>\n

Before the heat of the border had subsided, another big explosion took place in the parliament <\/span>, <\/span>}, at the center of which was Finance Minister Dr.TAG_OPEN_span_109 Swarnim Wagle. Lawmakers from the opposition parties participating in the discussion on the budget on June 11 had questioned the Finance Minister, suspecting the influence of middlemen in the tax rate manipulation and policy corruption. Irritated by the opposition’s questions, Wagle presented a very aggressive form in the parliament. Attacking the morality of the opposition MPs, he said<\/span>, “<\/span>} We are unaware of your scandal and <\/span>? <\/span>We have a lot of old scandal files in front of us <\/span>, <\/span>. This statement of the Finance Minister brought the conflict between the new and old forces in the parliament to a crescendo. He was accused of trying to silence the opposition by threatening to open the file<\/span>, <\/span>}, which was seen as an attack on the right to ask questions in parliamentary democracy. <\/span><\/p>\n

to ask the question or to ask <\/b>}? <\/b>Strong Opposition <\/b><\/p>\n

After the Finance Minister’s threat to open the file, the CPN-UML has made it a matter of prestige.TAG_OPEN_span_98 Deputy leader of the CPN-UML Parliamentary Party, Padma Aryal, stood in the parliament and challenged the Finance Minister. She said <\/span>, “<\/span>} What the Finance Minister said when he answered <\/span>, <\/span> is very objectionable. Who are you targeting <\/span>? <\/span>Don’t try to scare us by threatening to open the file. Aryal came forward and challenged the government and said<\/span>, “<\/span>} We are saying that the file should be opened.” Whether it’s a T-State file <\/span>, <\/span> or Omni or Widebody. All the files should be opened and the truth should be brought out. This stance of the UML shows that <\/span>, <\/span>} The parliament is no longer limited to the budget and laws<\/span>, <\/span>}} It has turned into a battleground to dig into each other’s past and tarnish political credibility. <\/span><\/p>\n

Policy corruption files and political bargaining<\/b><\/p>\n

Although it is not clear which file Finance Minister Wagle was referring to, scandals like Omni<\/span>, <\/span>Widebody<\/span>, <\/span> Baluwatar land scam and Giribandhu T-State are always in the news in Nepal.TAG_OPEN_span_83 Every new government opens these files <\/span>, <\/span>}, but in practice it is only a tool for political bargaining. When the opposition embarrasses the government<\/span>, <\/span>}, then the government threatens to ‘open old files’ is an old disease of Nepali politics. However TAG_OPEN_span_73 TAG_CLOSE_span_74 TAG_OPEN_span_74 TAG_CLOSE_span_75, the threat from the team that has emerged as a new force this time has raised doubts whether they are slowly falling back to the old style. Corruption should be investigated <\/span>, <\/span>, but using it as a weapon to suppress the voice of the opposition is not a good sign for democracy. <\/span><\/p>\n

{{TAG_OPEN_b_164}Existential battle between the new forces and the traditional parties<\/b><\/p>\n

}<\/p>\n

This whole sequence of events depicts a serious psychological warfare in Nepalese politics.TAG_OPEN_span_70 On the one hand, there are characters like Balen Shah<\/span>, <\/span> Swarnim Wagle and Hark Sampang{<\/span>, <\/span>} who want to present themselves as an unquestioning force to deliver and end disorder. They have a kind of ‘populist’ arrogance <\/span>, <\/span>} where they see others other than themselves as corrupt or incompetent. On the other hand, there are old parties like <\/span>, <\/span> UML and Congress{<\/span>, <\/span>}, which are adopting both defensive and aggressive tactics to protect their legacy and avoid the onslaught of new forces. Hark Sampang’s rebuttal to the prime minister proves that there is a lack of uniformity of ideas and a competition for personal identity even within the new force. <\/span><\/p>\n

Question of national interest and parliamentary dignity<\/b><\/p>\n

The Prime Minister’s statement on the border and the Finance Minister’s threat have finally raised questions about the dignity of the major organs of the state. Forgetting facts and evidence while speaking on a national issue like the border and threatening to file corruption while replying to the budget in the parliament are both examples of immaturity. The demand to remove the controversial statement of the Prime Minister from the record of the parliament is justified <\/span>, <\/span>} because it is sure to weaken Nepal’s claim in the future. Also, <\/span>, <\/span>If the finance minister has evidence of corruption, then those files should be used not to threaten the parliament <\/span>, <\/span>} but to take them to justice. The main purpose of sending the new power to the parliament was certainly not to repeat the old dirty game. <\/span><\/p>\n

Total<\/b>, <\/b><\/p>\n

Culture of dialogue or politics of excitement<\/b>? <\/b><\/p>\n

TAG_OPEN_span_52 Nepalese politics is now caught in a maze of excitement and accusations. TAG_OPEN_span_50 TAG_CLOSE_span_51 TAG_OPEN_span_51 TAG_CLOSE_span_52 Finance Minister Wagle’s use of threatening language and the opposition making it a matter of ego has overshadowed the country’s main agenda of ‘prosperity’. Whether it is pleading with the UK to resolve the border dispute or opening the corruption files at home<\/span>, <\/span>{{TAG_OPEN_span_48}, all of this requires a mature dialogue and legal process, not provocation{<\/span>, <\/span>. The Speaker should take seriously the demand raised by Harka Sampang to purify the parliamentary record so that national self-respect is not hurt. Unless the new forces are restraint in their expressions and the old parties do not improve their style of functioning, the parliament will continue to be a hub for such accusations. People no longer want ‘stunts’, <\/span>, <\/span>}. <\/span><\/p>\n

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The stage of Nepali politics has reached a new and complex juncture, } where there is a sharp clash between the credibility of traditional politics and the aggressive working style of the newly emerged forces.TAG_OPEN_span_158 Balendra Shah (Balen) , }, who entered the parliament from the social campaign of Dharan, Harka Sampang, } and FinanceContinue reading “The Rise of a New Force and the Power Struggle in Parliament”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":94153,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1391],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-94157","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized-en"],"acf":[],"publishedDateNp":"\u0968\u0967 \u0905\u0938\u093e\u0930 \u0968\u0966\u096e\u0969, \u0906\u0908\u0924\u0935\u093e\u0930 \u0967\u0969:\u0966\u096b","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94157","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94157"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94157\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94158,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94157\/revisions\/94158"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/media\/94153"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94157"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94157"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kalopati.com\/kp_api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94157"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}