KATHMANDU: Officials, including National Assembly Chair Narayan Prasad Dahal and Federal Parliament Secretary Padma Prasad Pandey, inspected the under-construction new Parliament building in the Singha Durbar complex today (Falgun 8) to review its progress.

With the regular sessions of the new Federal Parliament scheduled to begin shortly after the general elections on Falgun 21, the building is still not fully complete.

According to government sources, approximately 88% of the construction has been finished, with the remaining work in its final stages.

Previously, parliamentary sessions were held at the International Convention Centre in New Baneshwor. However, the centre was completely destroyed during the Gen Z uprising on Bhadra 23–24, following incidents of vandalism and arson, making it unusable for parliamentary proceedings.

The contract for the new Parliament building was signed on Ashwin 16, 2076, with a budget of around Rs 5.02 billion.

While the initial agreement aimed for completion within three years, delays have extended the timeline, requiring multiple deadline extensions.

The new building will house separate chambers for the House of Representatives and the National Assembly, offices for parliamentary parties, the parliamentary secretariat, and other administrative facilities.

Photos:

-Saroj Basnet

KATHMANDU: Known for his sharp wit, biting satire, and combative rhetoric against political opponents, CPN-UML Chair and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli appeared in a markedly restrained and statesmanlike form on Thursday while unveiling his party’s election manifesto.

The manifesto was made public at a ceremony held at Hotel Everest in New Baneshwor.

Departing from his trademark style, Oli refrained from attacking rivals or entertaining the audience with proverbs and sarcasm.

Flanked by seven young candidates on his left and six on his right, the former prime minister struck a serious and responsible tone.

Marking the release of the manifesto on Democracy Day (Falgun 7), Oli said the date symbolises both nationalism and democracy.

Reflecting on the political developments since the 2079 elections, he argued that Nepal has been trapped in a cycle of instability. He recalled that the UML had sought a public mandate in the past to safeguard national interest and sovereignty.

Referring to the political developments following the government’s fall amid what he described as a “Gen Z movement,” Oli labelled the events of Bhadra 23 and 24 as a period of “thick fog of uncertainty.”

“Today, the country stands at a crossroads,” he said. “On one side lie impulse and anger; on the other, reason and responsibility.”

Oli’s Four Serious Questions

In his address, Oli raised four critical questions about the recent political unrest, stressing that they should not be dismissed as conspiracy theories but addressed to protect the democratic system:

1. Was the country genuinely in decline, or was a fabricated narrative of failure created to provoke anger among the youth?

2. Who infiltrated the peaceful protest on Bhadra 23 and pushed demonstrators towards restricted areas?

3. Were the incidents of Bhadra 23 and 24 spontaneous, or were they orchestrated? Why were security forces and private property targeted?

4. Why was the dissolution of the House of Representatives carried out in a manner that appeared to strike at the political system, even when the protesters had no clear demands?

Oli defended his party’s cooperation with major political forces to end the prevailing despair in the country, implicitly referring to the Nepali Congress and the CPN (Maoist Centre), though he did not name them during the speech.

Rejecting allegations that unity among major parties caused the crisis, he said instability was deliberately fuelled by forces seeking to fracture unity and prolong political turmoil.

He said the responsibility of rebuilding damaged state institutions—including Singha Durbar, court buildings, and the Parliament complex—along with restoring private sector confidence, now lies with the UML. “We stand for reconstruction, not provocation,” Oli said.

UML’s Roadmap to Power

The UML manifesto outlines:

• 11 immediate priorities for swift implementation,

• 5 foundational commitments, and

• 25 pillars of prosperity aimed at long-term national development.

Claiming that a UML-led government will be formed after the elections, Oli pledged that the first Cabinet meeting would set clear timelines for implementing the manifesto’s commitments.

Distancing the party from past political “stunts” and confrontational politics, Oli said the UML remains firmly committed to the goal of “Prosperous Nepal, Happy Nepali.” He framed the upcoming election as a decisive contest between two paths—one of nation-building and the other of destruction.