NEW DELHI: With Rastriya Swatantra Party, led by 35-year-old rapper turned politician Balendra Shah, set to win Nepal polls by a landslide, PM Narendra Modi warmly congratulated the people and govt of Nepal on the successful and peaceful conduct of elections.“It is heartening to see my Nepali sisters and brothers exercise their democratic rights so vibrantly,” said Modi in a post on X. With counting still in progress, the PM didn’t name Shah, the likely new leader whose party RSP is dominating the count in the elections that were held six months after the violent, so-called Gen-Z protests that toppled Nepal’s govt and left 77 dead.“This historic milestone is a proud moment in Nepal’s democratic journey,” said Modi in a post on X.“As a close friend and neighbour, India remains steadfast in its commitment to working closely with the people of Nepal and their new govt to scale new heights of shared peace, progress and prosperity,” added the PM.A former mayor of Kathmandu, Shah hasn’t given much away in terms of what his foreign policy is going to be like, except that it will most likely be driven by his Nepal First hyper-nationalism. He has projected himself as someone who won’t succumb to foreign influence – unlike the established political parties – when it comes to ties with countries like India, China and the US.Shah lashed out at all three countries in a Facebook post last year but later deleted it. In 2023, in his mayoral office, Shah placed a map of “Greater Nepal” – that showed Indian territory as part of Nepal – apparently as a counter to a mural in Parliament depicting the geographical spread of the ancient Ashoka empire.Shah has cultivated the image of an outsider who views all three major powers (India, China, and the US) with equal skepticism and believes in neutrality. His party maintains that it will pursue balanced relationships with major powers.
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