Nepali citizens are voting for the new House of Representatives on Thursday. Legally, a ‘silent period’ is currently underway. The noise of election campaigns that echo in villages and city markets has stopped, the flags and posters of political parties have been removed, but is this really a ‘silent’ period as envisioned by the Election Commission?

This silence seen on the streets is just an illusion. An invisible war is currently going on on the screens of our smartphones that never let our minds rest, never sleep and never get tired, which neither the Election Commission’s code of conduct nor any physical border can stop. Definitely not. This silence seen on the streets is just an illusion. An invisible war is currently going on on the screens of our smartphones that never let our minds rest, never sleep and never get tired, which neither the Election Commission’s code of conduct nor any physical border can stop. In particular, this general election, which is being held after the ‘Gen-G rebellion’ of 2082, is not just a ballot exercise. It is also a battle for survival between ‘human conscience’ and ‘machine-made illusions (algorithmic effects)’.

Encrypted platforms

The traditional purpose of the silent period is to give voters time to exercise their ‘intellect’ with a calm mind, free from external noise. However, in modern elections, this time has become the most fertile ground for ‘digital chaos’. Encrypted platforms like WhatsApp, Messenger, and Viber have now proven to be ‘black holes’ that are impossible for the Election Commission to regulate.

UNESCO’s report ‘Balancing Act’, 2020 has exposed three main sources of disinformation. The ugly form of this, which includes instigators, their agents, and misleading messages, is now being exposed during Nepal's silent period. According to research by the Oxford Internet Institute, information received in closed chat groups has three times more influence on voters' decisions than propaganda on open public networks. This is because the person providing information in such groups is often an acquaintance or trusted friend. The 'fake scandals' spread via WhatsApp just before the silent period in the 2018 Brazilian elections are a vivid example of this. In Nepal, too, there is a risk of misusing features such as 'disappearing messages' to assassinate candidates without leaving any evidence.

‘Synthetic’ truth and the weaponization of information

The World Economic Forum’s ‘Global Risk Report, 2026’ has identified ‘misinformation and disinformation’ as one of the world’s top two risks. The report warns that AI-generated misinformation can shake the very foundations of democracy. In 2019, the Oxford Internet Institute revealed that ‘computational propaganda’ is being used systematically in more than seventy countries. However, after 2023, the ‘generative AI’ revolution has made this threat cheaper and more terrifying.

Today, the cost of producing deepfake video or audio has decreased by ninety percent. If those who misuse technology can ‘clone’ a candidate’s voice or create a fake scandal on the night before the election, they don’t have to work hard to change the psychology of voters, just one ‘click’ is enough. A study by MIT University in the US has also confirmed that 'fake news spreads six times faster than the truth'. In today's digital age, as 'excitement' sells more than 'truth', social media systems are giving more priority to misleading content.

The question of digital sovereignty

It is not Kathmandu, but the invisible software of Silicon Valley that decides what information Nepali voters will see and what they will not see. Another big challenge that developing countries like Nepal are currently facing is digital sovereignty. According to the Stanford Internet Observatory, algorithms from foreign platforms become 'silent kingmakers' in the elections of small countries. It is not Kathmandu, but the invisible software of Silicon Valley that decides what information Nepali voters will see and what they will not see. When voters only see information that matches their own views, or when a single click brings a tsunami of disinformation that alters the voter’s decision-making ability, then the fundamental pillars of democracy, ‘diversity’ and ‘informed consent’, are undermined. This can be called algorithmic tyranny, which distorts our national public opinion in favor of commercial or political interests.

Rigged algorithms and digital formalism

According to the recently published paper ‘Smart Elections or Rigged Algorithms’ by Saffendry et al., 2025, if developing countries fail to develop a framework for transparency in their own data security and technology (algorithmic), their sovereign elections will be reduced to a mere ‘digital formality’. The study also predicts that AI systems in countries with weak laws could undermine democratic values ​​and the fairness of elections.

Our Security Shield: Human Firewall

This election is also the moment of the historic decision of ‘will technology drive people or will people drive technology’. This is a difficult test to save Nepal from becoming an international ‘data laboratory’ and an information warfare laboratory of powerful nations. As Saffendry et al., 2025 warned in their research paper ‘Smart Elections or Rigged Algorithms’, when regulatory bodies and technology are weak, the critical thinking of citizens becomes the last protective shield of democracy.