BAGLUNG: Residents in Jaimini Municipality say they will only support election candidates who promise concrete measures to control the growing monkey menace, which they claim has made village life increasingly difficult.

With the House of Representatives election scheduled for 21 February, candidates visiting rural communities to seek votes have been met with an unusual but urgent demand to tackle the monkey problem or lose support.

Locals say monkeys have begun occupying homes and destroying crops as migration to towns has left many villages sparsely populated.

Kumari Thapa, a resident of Jaimini–5, said abandoned houses and empty settlements had allowed monkeys to move closer to human habitation. “They ruin the crops in the fields and damage everything stored inside our homes. It has become impossible to live here,” she said. “Whoever brings a plan to control the monkeys will get our vote.”

Another resident, Pratima Paudel, said children and elderly people feel unsafe staying alone at home. Monkeys that once lived in forests now roam freely through the village and have become aggressive, she added.

“When we go out for farm work, we have to leave someone behind to guard the house,” she said. “Earlier they were afraid of people. Now they attack when we try to chase them away.”

For many families, the threat has added to the pressure to leave the countryside. Wealthier households have already moved to towns, locals say leaving only poorer families behind.

Tambahadur BK of Bareng–1 said voters would back leaders who understand farmers’ problems. “Many candidates have come asking for votes,” he said. “This time we will choose the one who listens to our needs.”

As campaigning intensifies, residents say the issue of wildlife control rather than roads or infrastructure may prove decisive at the ballot box.