Editorial photo #13250256 Politics

With Five Weeks Left For The Parliamentary Election, Nepal’s New Parliament Building Is Still Under Construction, Old Lies In Ruins

Remains of the vehicles torched during the September Gen-Z protest are piled up in the burnt-down Federal Parliament premises in Kathmandu, Nepal, on January 28, 2026. The Parliament Secretariat worries about where to administer the oath of office to the newly elected lawmakers. The International Convention Center in New Baneshwor, which has been used as the Parliament building since the first Constituent Assembly, is destroyed due to arson on September 8 and 9, 2025. The parliamentary party offices used by political parties, including Nepali Congress and CPN-UML inside the Singha Durbar, are also affected by fire. Currently, the secretariat does not have any building capable of accommodating 275 lawmakers in a single hall for the swearing-in ceremony. The secretariat intensifies its search for a hall to hold the HoR meetings. It urges the Ministry of Urban Development to quickly complete construction of the new Parliament building within the Singha Durbar complex. (Photo by Subaas Shrestha/NurPhoto)