Nepal’s Catholic leader urges faithful to vote wisely ahead of landmark elections

A leading Catholic prelate in Nepal has called on the country’s people to elect candidates wisely in the upcoming March 5 parliamentary elections — the first polls since a youth-led uprising last September toppled the government and spotlighted the Himalayan nation’s economic and political woes.

“Our people need to choose their leaders wisely and utilize their vote to bring those who work for positive political change in Nepal,” Father Silas Krishna Bogati, apostolic administrator of the Vicariate Apostolic of Nepal, told EWTN News on Feb. 20.

Addressing Catholics directly, Bogati said: “As citizens, we must vote to enact the changes our country needs.”

Nepal, a landlocked South Asian country nestled between China and India, is home to 30 million people, according to the 2021 census. It is also home to 512,313 Christians, though church leaders say the community numbers are closer to 3 million. Hindus and Buddhists make up the majority.

A small but vibrant Catholic flock

The Apostolic Prefecture of Nepal was created on Nov. 8, 1996, and became a vicariate apostolic on Feb. 10, 2007.

Jesuit Bishop Anthony Francis Sharma (2007–2014) was the first apostolic vicar, followed by Bishop Paul Simick. After Simick’s transfer to the Diocese of Bagdogra in India, Bogati was named apostolic administrator in January 2025.

Ordained in 2000, Bogati is the first native Nepali priest. He served as director of Caritas Nepal for 11 years, overseeing a massive earthquake response in 2015 with international aid and innovative programs. He also led the resettlement of more than 100,000 Bhutanese refugees, many of whom moved to the United States.

Catholic missionary work began in Nepal in 1983, with the Jesuits playing a key role in education, focusing on social service and community development.

Nepal became a secular nation after abolishing its centuries-old monarchy in 2008; religious freedom had already been enshrined in a 1991 constitution. The Church provides pastoral service amid legally restrictive laws regarding religious conversion.

The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary Cathedral in Dhobighat, Lalitpur, Kathmandu, Nepal. | Credit: Catholic Communication Nepal

Today, priests, nuns, and laity serve through 37 schools — including a college, 18 high schools, and two technical schools — educating more than 30,000 students. Caritas Nepal and other social welfare programs serve the elderly poor and mentally ill.

Bogati described the current situation as one shaped by the aftermath of the September 2025 upheaval. “Following the Gen Z movement, Nepal has undergone significant changes and is now focusing on the upcoming elections, putting most other activities on hold,” he said.

Election campaign underway

Nepal will elect a new 275-seat House of Representatives — the lower chamber of Parliament — with 165 members chosen directly and 110 through party lists.

Various political parties are knocking on doors to solicit support and organizing rallies.

“One intriguing factor is that in Jhapa constituency No. 5, former prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli and popular former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah, 35 — a rapper and civil engineer with a considerable online following — are hoping to defeat each other, and the whole country is waiting for the outcome,” Bogati said.

Voter civic education across the country and digital literacy, especially for women and marginalized groups in far-flung areas, are underway.

“The government is especially active at the grassroots level, trying to educate the voters about how to correctly cast votes,” Bogati said. “I believe women and marginalized communities have been educated to cast their votes properly.”

Gen Z-led anti-corruption protests

Youth-led protests on Sept. 8, 2025, were fueled by resentment over a government ban on social media platforms. They were also driven by years of economic stagnation and accusations of deep-seated political corruption.

On Sept. 9, protests expanded across the country, with demonstrators setting fire to parliament buildings and other government offices, bringing down the Oli administration.

Oli, 73, who had served as prime minister four times, stepped down shortly after frustrated protesters set fire to his house and hundreds of other buildings.

After police killed young protesters, the unrest intensified. At least 76 people were killed in the violence.

The protests that brought down the administration cost the country roughly $586 million and about 15,000 people their jobs.

After that, Sushila Karki, 73, a former chief justice, was named interim prime minister on Sept. 12, with the mandate to conduct elections. She will step down after the vote.

“Some Gen Z movement leaders are now election candidates. Their main goals are better governance and anti-corruption. If these new leaders and their parties win, people expect a better political landscape and change in Nepal,” Bogati said.

Economic hardship and the diaspora

According to government data, more than 839,000 Nepalis departed the country to work overseas last year.

The World Bank estimates that about a third of Nepal’s GDP comes from remittances sent home by workers abroad.

The last census found that 7.5% of the population lives outside Nepal, many working abroad because of the country’s economic difficulties.

The diaspora cannot vote in this election because of logistical challenges, but it remains a powerful force in the country’s economy and politics.

India and China, which both seek to maintain influence in Kathmandu, will be watching the outcome closely.

Hope after elections

Bogati expressed cautious hope about the March 5 vote.

“It is hard to predict the outcome of the election, but we do see a trend among the youth advocating for better governance,” he said. “I hope this gets fulfilled.”

“However, the same old parties might still win the election, as we saw in Bangladesh. So, in the case of Nepal, time will tell,” he added.

Bogati said people are looking for a new government that works for the common good with a sustainable economy and peaceful democracy.

“People of Nepal are fed up with some of those political parties that have governed Nepal since 2008, when it became a federal republic,” he said.

Since then, Nepal has had 14 different governments, and many did not complete five-year terms.

“Now, people want political stability, good governance, and no corruption,” Bogati said.

Youth participants attend a retreat at Don Bosco Institute in Lalitpur, Nepal, from Feb. 24 to March 2, 2025. | Credit: Catholic Communication Nepal

Explaining his hopes for the role of young people after the elections, Bogati said: “Youth is the future, and we hope that in the future, leadership will be in the hands of able youth to direct Nepal’s future for development and good governance.”

“We had a dream of creating a new Nepal after the Maoist decade-long conflict, and this ushered in a democratic Nepal with lots of hope. We hope this will be realized with new poll results,” he added.