Kathmandu, — Sasmit Pokharel, a lawmaker elected from Kathmandu Constituency No. 5, has been appointed Nepal’s Minister for Education, Youth and Sports.
Pokharel, representing the Rastriya Swatantra Party, won the constituency by defeating prominent candidates including Nepali Congress General Secretary Pradeep Paudel, CPN-UML leader Ishwar Pokharel and Rastriya Prajatantra Party Chairman Kamal Thapa.
He began his political journey at the age of 18 by joining the Bibeksheel campaign led by Ujwal Thapa, driven by an interest in value-based politics, transparency and good governance.
Pokharel holds a bachelor’s degree in law and management from Kathmandu University and is currently pursuing a master’s degree at Tribhuvan University in policy, governance and anti-corruption studies.
During the 2074 B.S. local elections, he worked with the campaign team of Ranju Darshana. Following the merger of Bibeksheel and Sajha parties, he served as a central committee member. After internal political changes, he continued his political path independently.
In the 2079 B.S. local elections, he supported the campaign of Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balendra Shah, contributing to manifesto drafting and campaign strategy. He later worked at the metropolitan office as an assistant urban planning expert and was involved in education-related policy work.
Pokharel has stated that improving the quality of education will be his top priority.
