THE FOUR FRONTRUNNERS
The four names which have come up, including Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, former chief justice Sushila Karki, former chief of the electricity board Kulman Ghising, and mayor of Dharan, Harka Raj Sampang Rai, aka Harka Sampang.
Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, a former rapper, has stood in support of the Gen Z protestors, with several youths in Nepal calling him the “voice of a new generation.” Balen holds degrees in civil engineering and structural engineering, and has been active as a rapper and lyricist in Nepal’s hip-hop scene. He won the mayoral elections in Kathmandu in 2022 as an independent candidate.
Former Chief Justice Sushila Karki’s , name came up after protestors consulted the secretary of the Supreme Court Bar Association. The first female chief justice of Nepal, Karki has given several landmark rulings, including enabling women to pass citizenship rights to their children. She served as the chief justice from July, 2016 to June, 2017. An impeachment motion was brought against her by political parties, who accused her of interfering with the executive’s decisions. However, the motion was later withdrawn.
Kulman Ghising is a former CEO of the Electricity Board in Nepal, known for ending years of load-shedding. He holds a degree from the Regional Institute of Technology in India and a master’s from Tribhuvan University. Starting his career at the Nepal Electricity Authority in 1994, he became managing director in 2016 and resolved 18-hour daily power cuts. Ghising was removed from his position by the Oli government in March 2025, facing criticism from opposition parties and civilians.
Mayor of Dharan, Harka Raj Sampang Rai has established himself as one among the civilians, often rejecting VIP privileges.He has worked as a migrant worker in Afghanistan, following which he returned to his hometown Dharan and began working on local issues, according to Nepali Times. His work gained traction on social media, leading to his election as a mayor in 2022 as an independent candidate.
No final decision has been made yet, even as talks between the protestors, President Ram Chandra Paudel, and Army Chief Ashok Raj Sigdel continue. Multiple outlets reported that there had been a scuffle among those supporting different contenders.