Kathmandu empties as about 800,000 Nepalis head home to vote

BBC:

Some 800,000 Nepalis have left the Kathmandu Valley, Nepal’s most populated region, for their hometowns over the past week to vote in tomorrow’s election, authorities say.

About a tenth of Nepal’s 30 million population live in the Kathmandu Valley for work or school. More than 80% of the Himalayan nation’s land area is marked by mountainous terrain.

Nepal’s law requires citizens to cast their ballots in their registered consituency, often the place where they were born. Nepalis living abroad are not allowed to vote.

Photos show crowds gathering on highways lined with jeeps, minibuses and vans in the capital city, while traffic authorities have reported hours-long jams over the weekend.

This election will be the first the country has held since deadly youth-led anti-corruption protests toppled the government in September 2025.

Saroj Chapagain is among those who have made long journeys from Kathmandu to vote.

“I have come home to cast my ballot in order to safeguard the constitution and the system,” said the 38-year-old, who spent 14 hours on a public bus to get to his hometown in Bardiya district.