By A Reporter

A major local government in the federal capital, Kathmandu, is being led by a young individual. Ironically, despite promises of change and reform, the most irregularities are being reported under the rule of this youth.

There is no transparency in development or any other programs. Contracts worth millions have been awarded through quotation processes. He has completely disregarded other elected representatives who, like him, have been elected by the people. He neither meets them nor provides them with any information.

Fearing that he may have to face complaints from these representatives, he has not called an executive meeting for a long time. One representative reported that no one even knows whether the mayor is in office or away on a trip. “It’s hard to understand the mayor’s behavior—he consults no one. If something doesn’t sit well with him, he writes about it on Facebook and considers it done,” said the representative.

During the last board meeting, Ward No. 22 Chairperson Chinikaji Maharjan from the New Road area questioned, “What are you doing? Where do you go? No one knows anything. As elected representatives, do we have to find out about the city's activities through the social media?”

In response, Balen claimed that regardless of what the external media reports, only the news published in the metropolis's own outlet, ‘Metro News,’ should be considered trustworthy. He also advised not to believe other media outlets. Ironically, ‘Metro News,’ which Balen vouched for, is not even registered.

To legally operate an online portal, it must be registered with the Department of Information and Broadcasting. For online portals run by local governments, registration at the Registrar’s Office of the Bagmati provincial government is sufficient. However, the portal, which has been active since 2017, has not been registered anywhere.

According to sources, only ‘Metro FM’ has received broadcasting permission. The source added, “Government approval is mandatory to run an online platform, but the metropolis is defying this. Is it appropriate for those acting illegally to talk about legality?”

Sources say a private company has been contracted to operate the portal. The company was awarded the contract through a quotation process and has been receiving tens of lakhs (millions) of rupees annually. Spending lakhs on tasks that could be done for a few thousand raises suspicions of corruption. Currently, a Newar language column is being added to the page.

A budget of four lakh rupees (400,000) has been allocated just to add this column. According to an IT expert, the task could be completed for around 20,000 to 25,000 rupees. The responsibility of developing the column has been given to Surendra Bajgain, an assistant expert at the City Planning Commission (CPC).

Meanwhile, the metropolis claims that ‘Metro News’ is officially registered. Assistant Information Officer Dhruva Kumar Kafle insisted the portal was legally registered and operational. Speaking to JanAastha media he said, “Can any portal operate without being registered? This portal is registered.” However, the editor of ‘Metro News,’ Chandramani Bhattarai, admitted that it is being operated without registration.

He stated that an application had been submitted to the Provincial Registrar’s Office for registration. When it could not be processed there, the metropolis created its own law. According to him, once this law comes into force, the portal will be registered. “We had applied to the Department of Information and Broadcasting for the portal’s registration and paid all the necessary taxes. But they told us the registration couldn’t be done there and advised us to go to the province. We submitted the application to the province, but it couldn’t proceed due to issues like company registration and VAT. How can a local municipality open a company? That’s why we created our own law, and once it is implemented, everything will be resolved,” he said.

Mayor’s Arbitrariness and Disregard for Law

Mayor Balen, known for writing random things and insulting others online, is also quite adept at breaking laws. He has established a “Labour Bank,” which is not mentioned in any law or regulation. Through this Labour Bank, over 1,500 employees have been hired, yet the state neither recognizes the bank nor the employees working there.

Staff are hired and paid at the mayor’s discretion. Everyone receives their salary through NIC Asia Bank. Those working in Bagmati River cleanup efforts are not even provided with insurance. If they fall seriously ill, who will bear the cost of treatment and from which source? Workers are often half-submerged in the river during cleanup, and many are reportedly suffering from health issues as a result. They are also deployed in temple cleaning, street sweeping, and similar jobs.

Mayor or Just an Employee?

Elected officials don’t have fixed hours—they are expected to always serve the public and in any situation. But Mayor Balen behaves exactly like a civil servant. He used to come to the office at 10 AM and leave at 5 PM. What happens in the metropolis after that doesn’t concern him. Since last one month, he is not seen in the office either.

A while ago, while enjoying himself at the LOD Club in Durbar Marg, he remarked that his “duty ends at 5 PM.” One representative sarcastically said that perhaps a separate digital attendance system should be implemented just for the mayor, who seems to consider himself a regular employee. He criticized that while Balen finds time to visit clubs every day, he claims to have no time to meet with the public or listen to their concerns.

In fact, according to him, the words “dialogue and discussion” don’t even exist in Balen’s dictionary. While disputes arise in his office, he slips away to Dolakha to enjoy the snow without informing anyone.

The representative added, “He stirs conflict among municipal employees and then disappears. What expectations can we possibly have from someone like that ?”

Metropolis in Turmoil Because of the Mayor

Almost all activities carried out by the metropolis have become controversial— from advisor appointments to dismissals. He has appointed advisors in every department. Those advising the mayor include people involved in online scams and even entertainers.

Few people are unaware of his core team. One of them is Kumar Ben (Byanjankar), who is constantly around Balen and even has access to his Facebook. Sources claim Kumar is the one who writes the posts criticizing the government.

Kumar, who has served jail time for online fraud, is the son of Guru Narasingh Byanjankar, a long-time independent ward chair elected ten times in Lalitpur. He handles everything from boosting YouTube content to managing Balen’s digital image. He has even formed a special group for this, known as the MRI group. Sources say this group’s expenses are covered from Balen’s YouTube earnings.

Ward Chair Buys Marijuana (Cannabis) with City Funds

To bring ward chairs under his control, Balen is reportedly using taxpayer money as leverage. Each ward chair has been allocated a budget of NPR 180–200 million.

Many development projects involve demolishing previously completed work and rebuilding it. This includes removing block pavements on sidewalks to install granite or replace with different-colored blocks. Former mayor Bidya Sundar Shakya had installed blocks at the end of his term, but Balen had them removed and replaced right after being elected.

Currently, granite is being laid rapidly in Durbar Marg. In Ward No. 5, elected from the CPN-UML, chairperson Birendra Prajapati has reportedly become Balen’s puppet under the influence of alcohol. He provides Balen with all the UML’s internal information and even acts as his driver during district visits.

Additionally, major corruption is occurring in the heritage, education, and revenue departments—departments with heavy workloads. All work is awarded via quotations, typically to the same company, violating the Public Procurement Act, which prohibits awarding all contracts to one firm.

Boycotting Locals, Favoring Foreigners

There are many companies in Nepal capable of handling waste management. However, Balen bypassed local firms and awarded the waste collection contract to a foreign (Indian) company. A separate chair has reportedly been placed in the Environment Management Department for a representative of the Indian firm.

To operate in Nepal, foreign companies must obtain approval from relevant authorities and work permits. So, the question arises: Why was an Indian company chosen despite the availability of capable Nepali firms ? Sources claim the employee is being paid through Nepal’s Social Security Fund.

Balen, who had promised sustainable waste management before the election, has failed to deliver even two years after being elected. Plans for waste segregation remain stalled. Each year, the metropolis allocates a large amount of money for the development of Bancharedanda landfill site, but effective waste management is still elusive.

Ambulances for Publicity

After being elected, Balen decided to provide ambulances to 35 remote local municipalities of Far west Nepal keeping in mind that during coming general election he could form a new party and fight all over the country. Some municipalities have already received them. However, complaints of irregularities in this program have been filed with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA).

Name: Youth, Work: Gambling

Most members of Balen's secretariat are young men aged between 28–35. His personal secretary Bhupdev Shah, advisors Sunil Lamsal, Sashin Pokharel, Sudip Dhakal, and artist Arjun Ghimire "Pandekaji" are also considered his unofficial advisors. These individuals, who carry the city office’s ID cards, go around inspecting shops and businesses. All of them have been provided with vehicle facilities.

Millions Invested in Trust’s Building

The building at Kamaladi (Kathmandu Plaza) where the Metropolitan office is currently housed belongs to the Nepal Trust. A 10-year agreement was signed on March 22, 2023 (Chaitra 8, 2079 BS), with a clause to increase the rent by 10% every five years. Since moving in, the city office has redesigned the space twice switching between steel and wooden structures. An elevator has also been installed in the Trust's property with the city office’s own funds. However, only Balen and his advisors are allowed to use the elevator. Meanwhile, there appears to be no interest in constructing a building of their own.

Tax Wasted Like Water on Sand

Public funds are being spent under the guise of skills fairs and education festivals, enabling discreet corruption. Last year, the Metropolitan office organized a skills fair at Tundikhel, where nearly 20 million rupees were spent. The office claims that 3,500 individuals gained skills through the event, but there is no record of where these individuals are or how they are utilizing those skills. This calls into question the authenticity of the city's statistics.

The city office also placed flowerpots along roads and bridges, but due to lack of maintenance, many have been stolen. Additionally, art is being painted on the walls of the Nepal Academy (Pragya Pratisthan), another government-owned property. A source remarked, "The city is investing in art on someone else's building, wasting taxpayers' money. Even the flowers in the pots have been stolen."

Pile of Complaints at the CIAA

A significant number of complaints have been lodged against the city office with the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA). In the fiscal year 2080–81 BS (2023–2024 AD), a total of 273 complaints were filed against the Kathmandu Metropolitan City. Delays in processing these complaints have emboldened the administration to engage in further irregularities.

Big Talk, Little Action

Balen is rarely available for meetings or consultations. Instead of engaging in discussion, he prefers making provocative posts on social media. However, none of his fiery declarations have materialized. For instance, he once threatened to set Singha Durbar (Nepal’s central government secretariat) on fire, but it remained just a threat. He had also vowed to prevent Chief Administrative Officer Saroj Guragain from entering the office, but Ward Chairpersons ultimately escorted Guragain in. When forced to work in the same office with Guragain, Balen reportedly became uncomfortable.

Smart Boards Rotting in Storage

The Metropolitan City had allocated 40 million rupees for installing smart boards in 99 community schools. So far, only two—Vishwa Niketan Secondary School in Tripureshwor and Janakalyan Secondary School in Bafal—have received them. The rest are gathering dust in storage. A source claims the boards were purchased through quotations under the direction of Shailendra Jha from the Urban Development Department.

 Similarly, an Education Fest was organized for school students at the National Academy. The outcomes of the event, however, have been negligible. Balen’s initiatives like removing squatters, vacating Norvic Hospital, and demolishing illegal structures have all failed to deliver results.