Foreign Minister Penny Wong has congratulated Balendra Shah, popularly known as Balen, on being sworn in as Nepal’s Prime Minister, praising the country’s successful conduct of elections and highlighting the strong friendship between the two nations.
Shah, 35, assumed office following a decisive victory in Nepal’s first national election since last year’s youth-led protests. His rise signals a significant shift in Nepali politics, with voters rejecting established parties amid widespread frustration over alleged corruption, nepotism and elite rule.
A former rapper and engineer, Shah previously served three years as mayor of Kathmandu, where he introduced urban reforms, preserved heritage sites, and implemented anti-corruption measures.
Shah’s music, which openly criticised social inequality and government misconduct, helped build his popularity. One of his best-known songs, Balidan (“Sacrifice”), has attracted more than 14 million views on YouTube.
Shah took the oath of office and secrecy in a nationally televised ceremony at the Office of the President in Shital Niwas on Friday, administered by President Ramchandra Paudel.
The ceremony incorporated Vedic–Sanatan traditions, including conch blowing, recitations by 108 Batuks, and chants from 108 Buddhist monks. Senior officials, former prime ministers, and members of the diplomatic corps attended.
As parliamentary party leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), Shah was elected to the House of Representatives from Jhapa-5 in March, defeating former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli.
Upon taking office, he announced a Cabinet including Swarnim Wagle as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Shishir Khanal for Foreign Affairs, and Sunil Lamsal overseeing Physical Infrastructure, Transport and Urban Development, while retaining Defence and Industry portfolios himself.
Born in 1990 in Naradevi, Kathmandu, Shah studied engineering in Nepal and later in Karnataka, India. He is married with one daughter and is the youngest of his parents’ children. Ahead of taking office, he released a song expressing optimism about Nepal’s future, which went viral online.
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