KATHMANDU: Nepal's centrist party, led by rapper-turned-politician Balendra Shah, has taken an early lead in a high-stakes parliamentary election held on Friday. This election is significant as it marks the first parliamentary polls since last year's unrest, which resulted in at least 77 fatalities and widespread destruction. As counting continued through the day, early trends released by the Election Commission indicated that Shah's Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) was leading in more than half of the 165 constituencies, albeit with only a fraction of votes counted.

Celebrations erupted in the streets of Kathmandu, where RSP loyalists danced and cheered, although the actual vote count remains too low to confirm any concrete victories. Key figures in the election included former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who was ousted during the anti-corruption protests that led to the uprising, as well as Gagan Thapa, the newly elected leader of the Nepali Congress party. As of 5:00 p.m. local time, Shah was ahead by nearly five times the votes of Oli in the crucial constituency of Jhapa-5.

Kunda Dixit, publisher of the weekly Nepali Times, remarked on the potential political shift, indicating that voter discontent with established parties has reached a peak. "This is an even bigger upset than we expected," Dixit noted. The backdrop of these elections is a landscape altered by youth-led protests against corruption and economic failures, symbolized by Shah, who dressed sharply in a black suit and represented the aspirations of a generation hoping for change.

As voters await full nationwide tallies, which could take several days to finalize, the turnout stood at 59 percent, with over 3,400 candidates vying for seats in the House of Representatives. The excitement surrounding the election reflects a significant demand for political reform in Nepal at a time of profound social and economic challenges, with many hopeful for a new direction under Shah's youthful leadership.