Saptari-4 Lok Sabha Election: Interesting Showdown Expected Between Congress Veteran and JSP-N Candidate

Kathmandu. A fascinating contest is anticipated in Saptari Constituency No. 4, similar to Saptari Constituencies No. 2 and 3.

Dr. Babee Singh from the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) is set to compete again in the House of Representatives election, 2082, against Nepali Congress leader Tejulal Chaudhary, who has won three consecutive elections. Competition in Saptari-4 has largely been between the then Forum Nepal and the Nepali Congress since 2064 BS.

In the first Constituent Assembly election of 2064 BS, Mrigendra Kumar Singh Yadav won here, while the Nepali Congress has been winning continuously since 2070 BS, with the JSP Nepal remaining a key competitor.

Tejulal Chaudhary, representing the Nepali Congress and also known as TL Chaudhary, previously served as the Minister of Sports in the former government. He has been winning elections continuously since 2070 BS and operates the Nobel Boarding School in Kathmandu. In the 2079 election, he secured 23,491 votes, while Balkishor Yadav of JSP Nepal received 17,977 votes. Sukdev Prasad Sah of Janamat Party finished third.

The currently much-discussed Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) was in tenth place there, with Irfan Alam garnering 502 votes. This time, 65-year-old Sitaram Sah is the RSP candidate. Sah, a retired civil servant, has a Congress background. He contested the Provincial Assembly election in 2074 BS and was defeated by just 18 votes. In the 2079 local elections, Sah was defeated by 600 votes. Seeing the wave for the RSP this time, he joined the party and is contesting the election. He is being supported by Balkishor Yadav, who finished second in the 2079 election from JSP-N.

After JSP-N nominated Babee Singh, Balkishor Yadav joined the RSP and has now become Sah's key supporter.

JSP-N leader Singh is the daughter of JSP-N leader Mrigendra Kumar Singh Yadav, who was previously a member of the National Assembly. Her uncle, Aniruddha Singh, is a member of the Madhesh Provincial Assembly. Aniruddha's son, Atish, is the Mayor of Bodebarsain Municipality in Saptari-4.

Babee, who comes from a strong JSP-N family background, appears set to challenge Congress's TL, while RSP's Sah and Janamat's Jitendra Kumar Sah are also strong contenders. However, Dayananda Goit, who defected from Ashok Rai-led JSP-N to the RSP, claims, “The victory of RSP's Sitaram Sah is almost certain.” He cites three reasons for Sah's expected victory.

First, Sitaram Sah has some Congress votes since he defected from Congress. Second, he is supported by Balkishor Yadav, who came from JSP-N. Third, the 'ghanti' (bell) wave associated with the RSP. Based on these three factors, he believes RSP's Sah will win.

However, JSP-N leader Ashok claims that the RSP has no influence in Saptari. “The impact of the rally organized by Balen in Janakpur has been felt in the Madhesh region, most significantly in Dhanusha and Mahottari, but it has hardly shown any effect in Saptari,” he stated.

He asserted that an impact might be seen if Balen were to conduct another program along the Hulaki Highway, but currently, there is no discernible impact in Saptari.

He further claimed that JSP-N's organization in Saptari-4 is stronger than that of the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML, and CPN (Maoist Centre), ensuring victory. Just as Balkishor moved from JSP-N to RSP, Congress leader Sah has become the RSP candidate.

JSP-N estimates that the RSP will cut into Congress votes. Party leaders claim that once the RSP splits the Congress vote bank, the victory of JSP-N's Babee will be certain.

Babee has worked extensively in the field of Madhesi expatriates while living in Dubai for a long time. She returned to Nepal to pursue a political career. She began her political journey with the women's organization of JSP-N and is currently a central committee member of the party.

In the 2074 election, her father, Mrigendra Kumar, contested from the same constituency but was defeated by Congress's TL. She worked closely with her father during that election. Now, she is directly competing against TL.

Holding a PhD in Psychology, she also worked for a long time with organizations like UNDP. She is the founder of the Madhesi Unity Society abroad and has now fully committed to full-time politics.

Saptari-4 comprises four municipalities. JSP-N, CPN (Maoist Centre), Nepali Congress, and Janamat Party have each won one municipality. JSP-N has secured more Deputy Mayor and Ward seats. There are 27 candidates in this constituency, 13 of whom are independent.

Ganga Prasad Chaudhary is contesting from CPN-UML, Rupkumar Neupane from RPP, Ramnarayan Sah from Nepal Workers and Peasants Party, Rambabu Rajak from Nepal Janata Dal, Kaushal Kishor Das from Nepal Janata Party, Anita Kumari Chaudhary from Aam Janata Party, Ruby Karna from CPN (Maoist Centre), Bishok Kumar Yadav from Ujyalo Nepal, Ramakanta Chaudhary from Nagarik Unmukti Party, and Md. Zakir Ali from Rashtra Nirman Dal Nepal have filed their candidacies.

Shyamsundar Sah, Sanjeev Kumar Sah, Binod Kumar Mandal, Sanam Kumari Chaudhary, Surendra Prasad Sah, Durga Prasad Yadav, Santosh Prasad Singh, Sunil Kumar Yadav, Rameshwar Mandal Dhanuk, Shivkumar Kapad, Premkumar Mahara, Kirtinanda Chaudhary, and Keshav Prasad Sah are also contesting independently here.

The Sah community has the largest population in Saptari-4, followed by the Yadav and Tharu communities. There are approximately 18,000 voters from the Sah community, about 15,000 from the Yadav community, and slightly fewer from the Tharu community. Since the Tharu vote is considered decisive here, many assume it favors TL. Given the large population of the Sah community, there is speculation whether RSP's Sitaram will win. As the Yadav vote is crucial, Babee also appears to be a strong competitor.

CPN-UML has also fielded a candidate with the Chaudhary surname. Nagarik Unmukti Party, where Resham Chaudhary is the patron, has also favored the Chaudhary surname there, and the Aam Janata Party led by Prabhu Sah has also put forward a Chaudhary. There are six candidates from the Sah community and four from the Yadav community. The CPN-UML has a possibility of cutting into Congress's TL's Tharu vote base.

CPN-UML has nominated Ganga Chaudhary. In the 2074 election, CPN-UML finished third here, and in the 2079 election, they supported JSP-N. This time, CPN-UML will have to compete against Congress, JSP-N, and RSP here.