JSP Chairman Upendra Yadav Shifts Constituency to Saptari-3 for House of Representatives Election

Kathmandu. Upendra Yadav, Chairman of the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) Nepal, has moved to Saptari Constituency-3 in search of a safer seat for the House of Representatives election.

Yadav, who has changed constituencies in almost every election, has already started campaigning after registering his candidacy in Saptari-3. He won from Saptari-2 in the 2074 election but was defeated in the same constituency in 2079. Subsequently, he won the by-election in Bara-2 to enter Parliament.

In 2074, he secured victory from Saptari-2 with 21,620 votes. At that time, the then RJP Nepal had supported him. After RJP Nepal supported Upendra Yadav, JP Thakur, a leader of the same party, became an independent candidate and finished in third place. Umesh Yadav, a leader from the then Maoist party who is now in Upendra Yadav's party, was in second place, securing 11,580 votes at that time.

Previously, in the second Constituent Assembly election of 2070, Yadav was a candidate in Morang and Sunsari. He was defeated in Morang. In the 2064 Constituent Assembly election, Yadav won from both Morang and Sunsari, later leaving Morang to maintain his position in Sunsari.

Yadav is now back in Saptari-3, where the organizational strength of JSP Nepal is considered weaker compared to Saptari-2. He had focused heavily on development works and organizational building in Saptari-2. Even after winning from Bara-2, his attention remained concentrated on Saptari-2. Yadav, who was preparing to contest from Saptari-2, shifted to Saptari-3 after failing to reach an agreement with Dr. CK Raut, Chairman of the Janmat Party.

There are 22 candidates, including eight independents, contesting in Saptari-3. In the last election, Dinesh Kumar Yadav of the Nepali Congress was victorious in this constituency. Tara Kant Chaudhary of UML finished second, receiving support from JSP Nepal, while Janmat Party came in third. Lospa Nepal, which was in fourth place, has now merged with JSP Nepal.

In this election, Upendra Yadav's main rivals are Tara Kant Chaudhary from UML and Dinesh Kumar Yadav from Nepali Congress. Additionally, Amarkant Chaudhary, contesting from Rastriya Swatantra Party, appears as another challenge for Upendra Yadav.

Amarkant Chaudhary is the son of Chandrakant Chaudhary, who won the election from the same constituency in 2074. Chandrakant Chaudhary passed away a short time ago.

Locals in Saptari-3 say, "Amarkant is currently in mourning. He may receive sympathy votes, and he also has a strong organizational base due to his father, Chandrakant Chaudhary. This could make things difficult for Upendra Yadav."

Chandrakant Chaudhary, who contested from UML, is Amarkant’s uncle. Local leaders and cadres suggest that there is a possibility of the uncle and nephew reconciling if the influence of JSP Nepal Chairman Yadav increases.

In the same Federal Democratic Morcha, the Janmat Party has nominated Surendra Prasad Sharma, and the Rastriya Mukti Party has fielded Gajendra Mandal from the same constituency. Candidates from other parties include Parmeshwar Lal Sah from Ujyalo Party Nepal, Jay Narayan Mandal from Shram Sanskriti Party, Arun Kumar Sah from Nepali Communist Party, Dhaniklal Chaudhary from Aam Janata Party, Mahadev Ram from Bahujan Ekta Party, Santosh Kumar Chaman from Nepal Janata Party, Prabhu Prasad Sah from Nepal Workers and Peasants Party, and Umdeshwar Prasad Sahu from RPP.

Independently contesting candidates are Kaushalkumari Chaudhary, Harinarayan Paswan, Sarita Kumari Yadav, Omprakash Bishwakarma, Dubi Lal Yadav, Kaushila Devi Paswan, Razia Devi Sada, and Prabhu Narayan Chaudhary.

The Yadav community constitutes the largest population in this constituency, followed by the Tharu community. Locals suggest that since caste-based voting is influential in the Madhes region, a tough contest is likely between Amarkant Chaudhary and Upendra Yadav based on this factor as well.

Saptari-3 comprises five local levels. Among these, JSP Nepal has won two municipalities—JSP Nepal-1 and Lospa-1 (after the merger). UML won two, and CPN (UML-S, now CPN) won one.