Kathmandu, May 28
Bidya Sundar Shakya has done it again.
With his win in the race for Kathmandu’s mayor, the CPN-UML leader succeeds in continuing his record of never having lost any election.
He defeated Raju Raj Joshi of Nepali Congress with a margin of around 19,000 votes in the elections held to choose the Mayor of Nepal’s Capital, Kathmandu Metropolitan City.
Before filing his nomination, Shakya was not a known face for common voters. He, however, holds a strong command over UML cadres of the city as he has been in the ranks for three and half decades.
For this man born into a traditional trader family, a clean political and moral image has been the most significant asset to win him Kathmandu Metropolitan City’s top job.
Journey hitherto
He was 16 when the referendum was held in the 1970s for the people to choose between the party-less Panchayat system and a multiparty democracy. Perhaps for no reason or following the whim of some his neighbourhood friends, he actively participated in activities of the pro-democracy camp.
Later, Shakya carved a niche for himself as a political activist and decided not to continue the family occupation of trading. Since then, he has not suffered defeat in any of the elections he contested, both inside the party and outside.
Shakya was elected chairman of Ward 21 of KMC three times.The first of his victories came, including one before the restoration of democracy in 1990.
According to his fellow party men, he worked in the youth wing of the UML in the first few years of his political journey. Currently, he is the Kathmandu District Secretary of the CPN-UML.
Shakya says takes full ownership of plans and programmes introduced by his predecessor Keshav Sthapit, another UML leader sworn in in 1997. Shakya is confident of getting enough support from Sthapit as the popular mayor of his days actively participated in Shakya’s election campaign.
Likewise, he also expects to get good wishes from the first KMC Mayor PL Singh of the Nepali Congress.
Priorities
The new Mayor had told his voters that he would introduce cable cars, monorail and electric smart vehicles in order to manage the chaotic traffic in the Capital city. Now, he has reached the position to keep the promises.
“Yes, I introduced those plans to take action,” he says, “All of them will be achieved.”
“Other candidates had also included similar plans in their election manifesto,” Shakya hopes, “We will work together notwithstanding who won or who lost the polls.”
“I will rightly utilise each moment as the metropolitan mayor. I will not let my party, my cadres and my citizens bow their heads,” a confident leader shares his plans.
“I have to make Kathmandu such a city that every Nepali citizen can be proud of, by conserving the traditional culture and identity of Newars.”
Through the ballot, the metropolitan’s denizens have assigned Shakya with a burdensome responsibility. They have entrusted him to rule the Capital and its citizens.
Not only his voters, the whole nation will keep a close watch eye on this ‘undefeated’ leader to make Kathmandu an example for others to replicate.
