Kathmandu: Six months after the KP Sharma Oli-led government was ousted from power due to 'Gen Z' protests in Nepal, Balendra Shah 'Balen' was sworn in as the democratically elected Prime Minister of Nepal on Friday. The 35-year-old leader of the National Independent Party took the oath at the Presidential Secretariat at Sital Niwas at 12:34 pm in an 'auspicious time'.
Balen is the youngest democratically elected leader in Nepal and the first person from the Madhya Pradesh region to hold the highest executive office. He was appointed as the 47th Prime Minister by President Ram Chandra Poudel on Friday under Article 76 (1) of the Constitution.
Balen is the first democratically elected prime minister to take oath after the coalition government led by former Prime Minister Oli was ousted from power in September last year. Youth-led 'Gen-Z' protests against corruption, nepotism and a ban on social media turned violent, leading to the Oli government's resignation.
Balen's swearing-in ceremony witnessed a unique blend of Hindu and Buddhist religious traditions. The event was marked by elaborate religious rituals. Seven Brahmins blew conch shells, 108 Hindu batukas (young Brahmins) chanted Vedic mantras or swasti vachan and 107 lamas recited mangal vachan or Buddhist scriptures.
Sources said Balen is likely to form a small cabinet of 15 to 18 ministers. The former mayor of Kathmandu defeated Oli by a huge margin from Jhapa-5 constituency in the general elections held on March 5. The RSP won a landslide victory in the elections, winning 182 out of the total 275 seats in the House of Representatives.