Nawalparasi. Manish Khanal of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) who was elected to the House of Representatives from Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) constituency-2 has been talked about as a representative political leader of the younger generation.

Khanal, who was elected to the federal parliament at the age of 26, is seen as the face of the new generation with aspirations and alternative political thinking. Khanal, a resident of Madhyabindu Municipality-6, Tandi, was born on June 24, 2056. Khanal completed his school-level studies at the local level and went to Kathmandu for higher education.

He said that he got an opportunity to understand the political situation of the country closely while studying law. He joined the then Bibeksheel Sajha Party after expressing dissatisfaction with the practice of the old political parties and felt the need for an alternative political force. At the age of 20, Khanal was elected to the party’s central committee at the general convention of Bibeksheel Nepali Party held in Janakpur in 2076 BS. This made him an emerging young leader in national politics.

During his stay in Kathmandu, he actively participated in various Maitighar Mandal-centric movements, civic campaigns and government awareness programs. In recent years, he has also been involved in the ‘Genji’ movement and as a youth-centered citizen activist.

Along with political activism, Khanal also gained experience of parliamentary practice. He also served as the personal secretary of RSP lawmaker Asim Shah and gained practical experience in parliament and policy-making process. His popularity increased after he became a candidate from the RSP in the House of Representatives this time.

Khanal said that he joined politics with the goal of raising the genuine demands of the people through the parliament and playing an active role in the law-making process. He has pledged to work by prioritizing the voice, transparency, accountability and good governance of the younger generation. He said that the plan is to move ahead with study and research on the issues to be resolved at the policy level by coordinating with the local and state governments.

Voters of Nawalparasi (Bardaghat Susta East) have sent Khanal to the federal parliament with the hope of change and trust of the younger generation. Khanal was elected to the House of Representatives by defeating CPN-UML’s Til Bahadur Mahat by a margin of 25,592 votes. Mahat is contesting the constituency for the third time in a row.

Similarly, Nepali Congress candidate Om Bahadur Gharti got 14,713 votes and Ganesh Man Mahato of Nepal Communist Party got 1,538 votes.