India, Jan. 5 -- Political legitimacy tethered to popularity and digital visibility risks sidelining competent individuals who lack comparable social capital Nepal's 2022 elections, its second under the federal system, was marked by the disruption in Nepal's political status quo. Two figures stood out in particular: Balen Shah, whose outsider candidacy transformed urban political imagination, and the Rastriya Swatantra Party under Rabi Lamichhane, which leveraged his extensive media-built credibility to secure unexpected influence within months of its formation.

Their success was not an ideological victory, it was the victory of leaders who presented a vision of leadership that was different from Nepal's political norm. It was the resul...