KATHMANDU, Jan 26: A complaint has been filed with the Election Commission (EC) against Balen Shah, senior leader of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and former mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC), alleging that his recent remarks were hateful, misleading and defamatory.
The complaint, lodged by Dharma Raj Timilsina on Monday at the EC office in Kantipath, claims that Shah’s comments on social media undermine the democratic electoral process. It refers to Shah’s reaction to CPN-UML Chair and former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s public proposal for a transparent, intellectual and fact-based public debate, arguing that Shah’s response ran contrary to the spirit of democratic discourse.
According to the complaint, Shah used terms such as “murderer of 76 children,” “terrorist,” and “one who burns the country” without any evidence or court ruling, amounting to serious, baseless and criminal allegations. The petitioner argues that such statements harm an individual’s social reputation, spread hatred against legitimate political parties, and risk misleading voters.
Complaint filed at Parsa DAO demanding action against Birgunj M...
The complaint further states that irresponsible remarks of this nature weaken the constitutional objective of conducting elections in a free, fair and fear-free manner, while lowering democratic debate from discussions on policy and ideology to the level of violent accusations and rumors.
Citing the Constitution of Nepal, the election code of conduct and prevailing laws, the petitioner notes that the use of misinformation, hate speech and unsubstantiated accusations during elections is prohibited. The Election Commission has been urged to conduct a factual investigation into Shah’s statements and take action if they are found to violate the code of conduct.
The complaint also mentions videos circulating on social media allegedly showing the Rastriya Swatantra Party using vehicles with Indian number plates for election campaigning in areas including Mahottari, claiming this too constitutes a violation of election rules. The petitioner has called for an investigation and necessary action on this matter as well.
Timilsina has further requested the EC to issue clear directives to prevent the repetition of such hateful, misleading and unverified statements during the election period, and to help ensure that democratic debate remains focused on facts, policies and programs.
