An unelected government should not last long. This government must hold free, fair and timely elections to bring an elected one. For this, the incumbent government must feel the pressure to transfer power to the elected government soon. Though this sounds simple and straightforward, reality is far from it. Even now, the current administration’s ringtone on mobile phones blares notices and updates meant for a general election. However, the government’s own commitment to holding polls, and the enthusiasm of parties registered with the Election Commission, will decide the outcome. At the same time, we must look at the obstacles blocking a conducive atmosphere for elections. Honest effort from the government is essential to guarantee free and fair polls.

Whatever may later be judged right or wrong, at this moment there is a government led by Sushila Karki. After the bhadaure chatyang (the Gen-Z uprising), challenges are thickening by the day. These challenges are not just the government’s trials—they belong to Nepali society as a whole. Unless society openly discusses, confronts and reforms the faults within itself, we will remain travellers lost in a dark tunnel. Nepal is neither Bangladesh nor Sri Lanka; it has its own unique history of social and economic evolution. Here, repeated democratic movements have tried to empower the people. Yet the conditions that would truly strengthen citizens keep slipping into jeopardy. Political instability is now spilling over into social, economic, environmental and geopolitical spheres.

At this juncture, KP Oli, under whose leadership the CPN-UML has grown into a formidable force in size and influence refuses to recognise the very existence of the present government. How the UML takes to the streets will shape the country’s future. On the other hand, certain visible and invisible forces are bent on declaring the remaining shreds of the constitution dead. Even those who accept the constitution are split among themselves, each nursing their own biases about it. The constitution has fallen sick precisely because those who twist, trespass and interpret it to suit their vested interests have had free rein. Barely a decade old, why has it turned so frail? The very powers that claim credit for drafting it now dodge accountability.

Meanwhile, one cluster of Gen Z activists is advocating harder for a ruthless broom to sweep away the filth of corruption than for elections. Their argument is that if polls are held in the present stale atmosphere, the same outdated old faces will return to power. Hence, in their view, elections are only a second-order priority. Another group wants absolute constitutional overhaul before stepping into electoral politics. The new thinking brewing inside the deep state is to keep pushing back the electoral calendar until fresh forces favourable to them can be manoeuvred into a winning position.

If this constitution is torn up, what will emerge from the resulting void? No one can say for sure today. Those actively campaigning to shred it may still wallow in ideological confusion for some time. The federal republic has not discriminated against even those who disagree with the system when offering them a share in governance. Are the monarchists now quietly choosing the path of undeclared violence? Have they unwittingly entangled themselves in a web of anarchy? Is the 21st-century monarchy trying to return through bloodshed? Such questions are being whispered at the grassroots.

The primary duty of the Sushila-led government is to strive for good governance, guarantee security and conduct clean elections. These three tasks are interlinked, and none can be ranked above or below the others. The government’s performance alone will broaden its acceptability. It is unelected, and if an unelected setup lingers too long, democracy itself will be harmed. Should this leadership lose its prudence, the government will drift like a kite with a broken string.

Gen Z must realise that building a just society is far more complex than toppling the tyranny of any single party. Youngsters who burst crackers and lit lamps when an elected government fell should not conclude that everything is now fixed. If the present framework persists, we may have to endure an unelected regime for a long stretch. No matter how well unelected actors perform, they can never be a substitute for an elected government. Risks to an advanced democratic republic, national sovereignty, territorial integrity and the supremacy of the people are greater during unelected interludes. That is why caution and restraint are compulsory while hurrying towards general elections.

Ultimately, the only effective counter to every brand of extremism lies in party competition and a mature political culture rooted in parties. Therefore, no matter how attractive or unattractive the faces in the current cabinet may appear, the only way to institutionalise democracy is to pressure them into moving towards elections. Until we say and act on the truth that “the source of power is the people, and it emerges from the ballot box,” the country cannot be saved from the nightmare of anarchy or militarisation.

Those whisked to Singha Durbar after the Gen Z tremor must not forget their core responsibilities. This government was not formed to crown any great hero or to glorify the script-writers lurking behind the curtain. Its chief job is to establish the supremacy and primacy of the people. No clear message is flowing that concrete steps are being taken in that direction. From one angle, attempts may be made to employ religious polarisation. No one knows when or where that matchstick will be struck. There is alarming complacency about the conflicts that religious extremism can ignite. Some are trying to ride this very wave to amass power. Will Nepali society walk the path of liberalism, tolerance and harmony, or will it harbour hatred, contempt for others and the mentality that only “we” are superior? Will it embrace Nepal’s diversity, or live gripped by ethnic, racial and regional ego?

The so-called ‘old’ parties are unwilling to read the writing on the wall amid all this turmoil. Their incompetence forced the country into this unforeseen chain of events. Yet no party supremo is owning up and attempting a fresh start inside their own house. They treat the present vacuum as nothing more than the ‘interval’ in a cinema hall—confident that the same old romance, loot, horse-trading, dominance and syndicate rule will resume after the break. Around the world these days, communists belong to an endangered political species. In Nepal, Communists formed governments only through elections (however flawed), and even though through peddling the same stale slogans. Amid the crowd of parties registered with the Election Commission, spotting an inclusive Nepal is like looking for a needle in a haystack.

Back in the villages, around Mangsir (November-December), travelling ‘bioscopes’ used to arrive during the harvest season to show moving pictures of the whole world. This Gen Z wave has turned into something similar. Among them are power-hungry types and others clutching various trump cards of self-interest. The Sushila government must stomach all of them. It must rein in the anarchy, immorality and extremism committed in the name of Gen Z and steer the country onto the path of good governance. Some Gen Z leaders are whining that ministers or the PM did not pick up their phone calls. The real question is rather—has the present government responded to the expectations of ordinary citizens? On the issue of governance, the prime minister risks pressure even from her own cabinet colleagues. The demand of present times—transparency and accountability.

Structural corruption embedded in the state machinery remains intact and runs unchecked. Exploitation of natural resources has deepened. Mafias have grown more active by cashing in on political instability. Change is visible only inside Kathmandu’s Singha Durbar, while social transformation is nowhere to be seen. Those who refuse to change themselves but want everyone else to change.

Ordinary people remain perpetually anxious about future uncertainties. The reason is endorsement of violence in the name of political struggle, and physical attacks in the name of revenge. Even remote villagers are frightened. Security personnel are more terrified still. Many hesitate to speak their mind. No one knows who will be assaulted, where and when. In such an atmosphere, democracy can never take root. The spread of fear only leaves democracy gasping for breath. Until every political actor grasps the importance of elections and resolves to contest with a radical reform agenda, the journey towards an elected government will remain shrouded in fog.