Kathmandu, March 8 -- A spectacular defeat of top leaders and the poor performance overall of the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML, two dominant political parties since 1990, in the March 5 vote have stunned their cadres and posed serious questions before the leadership. Almost all top leaders of the Congress and the UML have lost the elections as the Rastriya Swatantra Party, formed in 2022, surges towards a two-thirds majority, in a rare mandate since 1959.

In Nepal's first elections, the Congress under BP Koirala secured a two-thirds majority, winning 74 out of the 109 seats. After 67 years, the Rastriya Swatantra Party is likely to achieve the feat. This achievement comes despite criticism of the mixed election system adopted in 2015 ...