The cabinet was expanded for the second time on Monday on the recommendation of Prime Minister Sushila Karki. However, the government formed on the basis of the Gen-G movement of 23 and 24 Bhadra has not yet ensured representation of the new generation.

On Monday, Anil Kumar Sinha was sworn in as the Minister of Industry, Law and Land Management, Mahabir Pun as the Minister of Education, Science and Technology, Madan Prasad Pariyar as the Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Development, and journalist Jagdish Kharel as the Minister of Communication and Information Technology. Three days after Karki became Prime Minister, economist Rameshwor Khanal was sworn in as the Minister of Finance, Kulman Ghising, former Executive Director of Nepal Electricity Authority, was sworn in as the Minister of Energy, Physical Infrastructure and Urban Development, and Om Prakash Aryal as the Minister of Home Affairs.

However, both times the Cabinet expansion failed to include representation from Gen-G. Bablu Gupta, a Gen-G youth who has been at the forefront of the protests against corruption and the ban on social media, says that Gen-G representation in the Cabinet is necessary to run the government according to their essence and feelings.

‘Now many are either employees or already in government roles, experts like them are also needed in the cabinet,’ said 27-year-old Gupta, ‘However, to work according to the spirit of the new generation, representation of Gen-G should also be mandatory. After all, a leader is not only an expert, but also a person who understands the wounds of the people and society.’ According to sources in the Prime Minister’s Office and the Council of Ministers, discussions are ongoing on the issue of representation of Gen-G. Prime Minister Karki still has the ministries of Foreign Affairs, Defense, Drinking Water, Women, Children and Senior Citizens, Youth and Sports, Forest and Environment, Labor, Culture, Tourism and Health. 

Although Dr. Sangeeta Kaushal Mishra was proposed for the Ministry of Health, it has been stopped due to controversy over her name. ‘Discussions are underway on health, Gen-G may be represented in ministries including Women, Children and Senior Citizens, Youth and Sports,’ said a source in the Prime Minister’s Office.

After being appointed Prime Minister, Karki had said in an interview with BBC Nepali that she planned to have no more than 10 to 11 people in the cabinet. She said that the search is being done to bring in those who have worked in an organization while staying outside politics. 

When the then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned amid the situation arising after the Gen-G movement, the Nepali Army facilitated dialogue with Gen-G. After repeated discussions from 11 pm on 24 Bhadra for two days, Sushila Karki's name was proposed in the evening. And, on 27 Bhadra, former Chief Justice Karki took the oath of Prime Minister. 

The day after the Prime Minister was appointed, Gen-G representatives met Karki in Baluwatar. 'At that time, we had told Sushila to form the cabinet according to the person with whom you are comfortable working,' says Gen-G Raksha Bam (26), who also participated in the discussions with the army. 'We had even said that even if it is an elected government, a competent and expert person should be in the cabinet.'

At that time, Prime Minister Karki told Gen-G, 'We also need your support.' ‘However, just as the Gen-G movement brought about a change, the moral responsibility to institutionalize it also lies with the participants in the movement,’ she adds, ‘so in some way or another, I think Gen-G will be represented to fulfill the aura of change and the hope of sacrifice.’

According to sources, some groups have even sent proposals to the Prime Minister with the names of Gen-Gs who could become ministers. However, even with so many such names, it has been difficult. ‘Even though Gen-G is now outside the government, we continue to warn, and we raise our voices if wrongdoing is done,’ says Gen-G Yujanraj Bhandari, who participated in the discussion with the army, ‘However, Gen-G representation is necessary for our voices to be heard.’

Some Gen-G leaders say that Gen-G should be in the majority not only in the leadership of the ministry, but also in other secretariats, including the Prime Minister’s Office. ‘The Gen-G movement has not only taken place in Kathmandu, but has taken place all over the country. The injured are all over the country,' says Bablu, 'in this case, we need to coordinate with friends all over the country, their voices will have to be taken to Singha Durbar.' That is why he says that the presence of Gen-G is needed in the secretariats. 

In the past, there has been a practice of making Gen-G present in political changes of this kind around the world. When the then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to leave the country after the movement against the quota system in Bangladesh, student activists were also included in the interim government formed in Shrawan 2081. Along with civil society, two student activists were also sworn in to the advisory group led by Nobel laureate Professor Mohammad Yunus. 

In Nepal too, the then rebel Maoists were included after the people's movement of 2062/63. ‘Nepal has a history of including the people in the streets even after the people’s movement. The elections were held only later in 2064, but the current movement seems to have difficulty because there is no definite leader,’ says young analyst Naveen Tiwari. ‘It seems that since Gen-G is not organized in one place, even their voice is not strong.’ Tiwari says that it would be appropriate to include them since Gen-G is the initiator of the current change.

While the new generation was running the Nepobabies campaign on social media, exposing the luxurious lifestyle of the leaders’ children, the government had closed some social media on 20 Bhadra. Then, through the app Discord and the social community Reddit, which was targeted at gamers, Gen-G announced a street demonstration on 23 Bhadra against corruption and the ban on social media.