Opinion | Before you take credit for Khula Manch, read its history
Summary
Khula Manch’s long political history and recent reopening have sparked debate after Balendra Shah and Gagan Kumar Thapa traded claims over credit for the public space. The article argues that the venue’s democratic significance predates Shah and was shaped by decades of political movements, heritage activism and urban encroachment battles.
Key Points
- Gagan Kumar Thapa’s speech at the Nepali Congress convention at Khula Manch and Balendra Shah’s sarcastic Facebook post triggered a debate over who deserves credit for the venue’s reopening.
- Khula Manch is part of historic Tundikhel and has long served as a site for political gatherings, from the anti-slavery proclamation in 1924 to the 1990 and 2006 democratic movements.
- After the 2015 earthquakes, the space was increasingly encroached upon by reconstruction materials, a temporary bus park and commercial structures, prompting the Occupy Tundikhel campaign in 2019.
- Kathmandu Metropolitan City formally reopened Khula Manch to the public on April 16 this year, but the article says its political character existed long before Shah’s tenure.
