On December 9, 2025, Kathmandu’s streets buzzed with anticipation and anxiety as Nepal’s Election Commission announced that 114 political parties—some entirely new, others well-worn by history—had been approved to contest the country’s first general election since the dramatic Gen Z uprising. The election, now set for March 5, 2026, marks a pivotal moment for the Himalayan nation of 30 million, still reeling from months of political upheaval, economic hardship, and public distrust toward the establishment.
According to UCA News, the Commission’s spokesman, Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, sought to reassure a wary public: “About 19 million eligible voters have registered their names. We assure everyone that the election will take place in the given time.” He emphasized that officials are determined to ensure a “free, impartial and peaceful environment.”
This election is no ordinary affair. It’s the first since the September 8-9, 2025, Gen Z-led protests that toppled the government of Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli. The protests, initially sparked by a brief ban on social media, quickly snowballed into a nationwide movement fueled by anger at economic stagnation and corruption. Demonstrators—many under the loose “Gen Z” umbrella, aged under 28—set parliament and government offices ablaze. The violence claimed at least 73 lives and forced a national reckoning on the state of Nepal’s democracy.
In the aftermath, the political landscape has shifted dramatically. Around a fifth of the 114 approved parties are new, including several founded by young activists who played leading roles in the anti-corruption protests. Their emergence signals both hope and uncertainty. As Bhattarai put it, “We assure everyone that the election will take place in the given time,” but the shadow of unrest lingers.
Against this backdrop, India has stepped up its engagement with Nepal. On December 9, Munu Mahawar, Additional Secretary in India’s Ministry of External Affairs, met with Nepal’s Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal in Kathmandu. According to PTI and The Rising Nepal, Mahawar’s four-day visit aims to review Nepal’s election preparations and assess the progress of India-funded development projects. His visit is especially notable—it’s the highest-level Indian official visit since the Gen Z uprising that ousted the previous government.
Mahawar conveyed India’s commitment to assist Nepal in ensuring the smooth conduct of the March 5 election. He emphasized the importance of ensuring the availability of necessary resources and equipment for the polls. “India is ready to provide full support to Nepal for the smooth conduct of the general election,” Mahawar told his Nepali counterpart, as reported by home ministry officials. He also extended an invitation to Aryal to visit India at a mutually convenient time.
But the meeting went beyond electoral logistics. Mahawar expressed India’s readiness to assist in post-earthquake reconstruction in Jajarkot, a region still struggling to recover from the major 2023 quake, and to help restore infrastructure damaged by other recent disasters. This offer of support comes at a crucial time, as Nepal grapples with the dual challenges of rebuilding and political renewal.
Home Minister Aryal, for his part, thanked India for its continued cooperation. He underscored the need to enhance the capacity of security agencies on both sides of the border and called for improved information-sharing to curb theft, robbery, illegal trade, and other cross-border criminal activities. The open border between Nepal and India is both a lifeline and a source of persistent headaches, with criminal networks exploiting the porous frontier.
The backdrop to these high-level talks is a country in flux. The World Bank estimates that a staggering 82 percent of Nepal’s workforce is informally employed, with a GDP per capita of just $1,447 in 2024. Economic hardship has been a constant drumbeat in the lives of ordinary Nepalis. One need only look at the photograph published by AFP on November 27, showing Kamal Gautam—who lost his job following the Gen Z protests—sitting with his family in their cramped one-room Kathmandu home, to grasp the real human toll of the political crisis.
The roots of the Gen Z uprising run deep. While the immediate trigger was a fleeting social media ban, the movement tapped into broader frustrations: chronic unemployment, underemployment, and a sense that the old guard had failed to deliver on the promise of a better life. Protesters, mostly in their twenties, organized online and offline, drawing inspiration from global youth movements but channeling their anger into distinctly Nepali demands for transparency, jobs, and justice.
The September protests spread with a speed and ferocity that caught the government off guard. Parliament and government offices were torched, and the security forces responded with force. The violence left 73 dead and hundreds more injured, according to UCA News. The collapse of the K P Sharma Oli-led government opened a new, uncertain chapter in Nepal’s political history.
Now, as the country prepares for the March 2026 election, the stakes couldn’t be higher. The sheer number of parties—114 in total, with roughly 20 percent new—reflects both the vibrancy and the fragmentation of Nepal’s political scene. Many of the new parties are led by young activists, hoping to channel the energy of the Gen Z uprising into lasting change. But with deep public distrust of established parties and institutions, the path to a credible, peaceful election is anything but guaranteed.
International observers are watching closely. India’s visible commitment to Nepal’s democratic process is rooted in both neighborly concern and strategic interest. Stability in Nepal is vital for India, given the two countries’ deep economic, cultural, and security ties—not to mention the shared challenges of cross-border crime and disaster response.
Yet the challenges ahead are formidable. Ensuring a free and fair election in a country still scarred by violence and division will require more than technical support and diplomatic goodwill. It will demand a genuine reckoning with the grievances that fueled the Gen Z protests—economic insecurity, lack of opportunity, and a pervasive sense that the system is rigged against ordinary people.
As Bhattarai of the Election Commission promised, officials are “determined to ensure a free, impartial and peaceful environment.” But that promise will be tested in the months ahead, as campaigning intensifies and the country’s political future hangs in the balance.
For now, Nepal stands at a crossroads: a nation battered but unbowed, searching for a path forward amid uncertainty. The coming election offers a chance—perhaps a fleeting one—to reset the country’s political trajectory and restore faith in democracy. Whether that chance is seized, or squandered, remains to be seen.
