Parties weigh local election readiness amid calls for stability
As parties begin early work for local elections that may be held in Falgun (mid-February to mid-March 2027), former Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai has warned against moves to topple the government.
Local level elections are expected to be held in the coming month of Falgun, which runs from mid-February to mid-March 2027, according to Nagarik News, though the timing is not settled. Nepal's parties are at different stages of preparing for the vote, while some political leaders warn against the recurring push to topple governments soon after they are formed.
Election readiness and party strategies
According to Nagarik News, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), the largest party in parliament, has already started choosing its candidates for the local polls and has collected applications from aspirants. The older, established parties appear less prepared. The Nepali Congress (NC) says it is committed to the elections; NC Joint General Secretary Yogendra Chaudhary said the party would never stand against holding them but that the date must be agreed. He said the party is organising its election bureau under the leadership of Pushpa Bhusal to manage candidate selection and campaigning. Nagarik News reports that the NC is for now prioritising internal party management.
The CPN-UML has told its cadres to build momentum at the local level, though leader Yubaraj Gyawali said the party has not yet begun a formal candidate selection process. The Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) has launched a nationwide awareness campaign. CPN Central Member Metmani Chaudhary said the campaign is not strictly an election programme, but acknowledged that it aims to organise and mobilise the party base for future elections.
The parties do not agree on when the vote will take place. Chaudhary told Nagarik News that his party believes the elections will not be held in Falgun and will instead take place in Asar (mid-June to mid-July 2027).
Concerns over political instability
Amid these preparations, former Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai has criticised talk of changing the government. In a social media post reported by Onlinekhabar and Nagarik News, Bhattarai described the talk of launching protest movements and toppling the government soon after the major national festivals as unfortunate and concerning.
Bhattarai said competition and criticism between ruling and opposition parties are normal and necessary in a mature multiparty democracy, but warned that repeated attempts to topple governments shortly after elections would push the economy further down, drive young people abroad and expose the country to geopolitical risks. He called for continued public scrutiny of the government and state institutions, and said officials who fail to listen to the public should be held to account through lawful procedures.
"Let us allow an elected government to complete its full term as long as it remains within the boundaries of the Constitution. If it fails to perform or goes wrong, let us send it home through the next election," Bhattarai wrote, as quoted by Onlinekhabar English.