Nepali Congress Fields New Candidates in Kathmandu Valley, Drops Several 2079 Winners Amid Internal Dissent

Kathmandu. The Nepali Congress fielded candidates in only 8 out of 15 constituencies in the Kathmandu Valley during the 2079 elections. At that time, Congress had an electoral alliance with the then CPN (Maoist Centre) and CPN (Unified Socialist) across the country. Out of those 8 seats, 7 candidates were elected.

Kathmandu has 10 seats, Lalitpur has 3, and Bhaktapur has 2 seats. Among these, Congress fielded candidates in 6 seats in Kathmandu and 1 seat each in Lalitpur and Bhaktapur, totaling 8 seats. In that election, Prakash Man Singh contested in Kathmandu-1, Santosh Chalise in Kathmandu-3, Gagan Thapa in Kathmandu-4, Pradip Paudel in Kathmandu-5, Bhimsen Das Pradhan in Kathmandu-6, Rajendra KC in Kathmandu-10, Uday Shamsher Rana in Lalitpur-1, and Durlabh Thapa Chhetri in Bhaktapur-2. Except for Pradhan, all others won.

In Kathmandu-6, Pradhan not only lost but finished third. Sisir Khanal of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) won with 14,221 votes, while UML candidate Sarbendra Khanal secured 8,917 votes. Pradhan received 8,812 votes.

Under the three-party electoral alliance, Onasari Gharti of the then Maoist Centre contested in Kathmandu-2, Manushi Yami Bhattarai of Maoist Centre in Kathmandu-7, Jeevan Raj Shrestha of CPN (Unified Socialist) in Kathmandu-8, Kalpana Dhamala of Maoist Centre in Kathmandu-9, Krishnalal Maharjan of CPN (Unified Socialist) in Lalitpur-2, Pampha Bhusal of Maoist Centre in Lalitpur-3, and Sunil Gotey of Maoist Centre in Bhaktapur-1. Among the 7 candidates from parties other than Congress in the alliance, none won the election.

The new working committee led by Gagan Thapa, elected during the special general convention held from Poush 27 to 30 in Bhrikutimandap, Kathmandu, has fielded party candidates in all 15 seats of the Valley. However, 5 out of the 7 who won in the previous direct elections did not receive tickets this time. Two candidates are repeating, and the rest are new. One candidate who entered the House of Representatives in 079 through the proportional representation system is also among them.

Among those who won the direct elections in 2079, only Paudel from Kathmandu-5 and Rana from Lalitpur-1 are repeating.

Singh from Kathmandu-1, Chalise from Kathmandu-3, KC from Kathmandu-10, and Thapa from Bhaktapur-2 did not receive tickets. Thapa, who won from Kathmandu-4 in 079, is now contesting from Sarlahi-4 in the Madhes region.

KC had announced he would not contest to give opportunities to new faces. KC had won the election from Kathmandu-1 three times. He was victorious in 070, 074, and 079. In 070, he had defeated the current CPN Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.

Thapa, who won from Bhaktapur-2, is currently ill. He returned after undergoing a left hip replacement surgery at Apollo Spectra Hospital in New Delhi, India, last Baisakh. Family sources indicated he has other health issues as well.

Chairman Thapa did not give tickets to Chalise and Singh this time.

A case of corruption and money laundering has been filed against Chalise. On Poush 28, the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) filed a case against Chalise in the Special Court, alleging the acquisition of disproportionate assets exceeding 3.5 crore rupees. Due to the filing of the case, Chairman Thapa did not nominate him, considering him a controversial figure.

Thapa also denied a ticket to Singh. Singh started contesting elections from Kathmandu-1 in 2064. Singh, who was directly elected 4 times in 2064, 2070, 2074, and 2079, wished to contest again this time. Although the regional committee recommended his name for candidacy, Chairman Thapa rejected it.

Thapa has nominated 12 new candidates in the Valley this time. They are: Prabal Thapa Chhetri in Kathmandu-1, Kabir Sharma in Kathmandu-2, Ramesh Aryal in Kathmandu-3, Sachin Timalsina in Kathmandu-4, Krishna Baniya Chhetri in Kathmandu-6, Pramodhari Guragain in Kathmandu-7, Sapana Rajbhandari in Kathmandu-8, Nanu Maya Bastola in Kathmandu-9, Himal Karki in Kathmandu-10, Prem Krishna Maharjan in Lalitpur-2, Jitendra Kumar Shrestha in Lalitpur-3, and Kiran Neupane in Bhaktapur-1, and Kabir Rana in Bhaktapur-2. All these are new candidates for the House of Representatives direct elections.

Among the new candidates, 3 were defeated in the previous Provincial Assembly elections. Bastola, the candidate from Kathmandu-9, was defeated in 079 in 9 (1); Prem Krishna Maharjan, the candidate from Lalitpur-2, was defeated in 074 in Lalitpur 2 (2); and Jitendra Kumar Shrestha, the candidate from Lalitpur-3, was defeated in the 079 election in 3(2).

Sapana Rajbhandari, who received the ticket from Kathmandu-8, became a member of the House of Representatives in 079 through the proportional representation system.

Among the nominated candidates, Thapa is a Tarun Dal Central Member, Nepali Congress Kathmandu District Member, and General Convention Member; Sharma is the Congress Kathmandu-2 Regional Chairman; Aryal is a General Convention Representative; Baniya is the Kathmandu District Chairman; Guragain is a Central Member; Rajbhandari and Bastola are Party Central Members. Shrestha is the Congress Lalitpur District Chairman.

New Candidates, New Challenges

The new candidates have not been accepted by the former Chairman Deuba faction and Dr. Shekhar Koirala faction. Top leaders from this faction, apart from those who received tickets, have not been involved in election campaigning.

Anshul KC, the Kathmandu President of the Nepal Student Union, a sister organization of the Congress, believes that if new candidates move forward after consulting experienced leaders, they can bring positive results. "Unity within the party is necessary for the election," KC told Ratopati. "If internal unity is achieved, the possibility is good."

Singh, a former Central Vice-Chairman and General Secretary, wanted to contest again in the constituency where he won four consecutive times, but he could not become a candidate as the internal party scenario changed, even though the regional committee recommended him. Since not getting the ticket, he has not left his house for election campaigning.

Thapa visited Singh's house twice to meet him, but Singh did not come out. Sources close to Singh informed that there is no schedule for him to participate in the election. Congress leaders themselves say that it will be difficult to win in Kathmandu-1 if Singh does not campaign, as Prakash Man Singh has a very strong hold in the Valley. Previously, ticket distribution in the Valley was done based on his recommendation.

On the other hand, the Valley is also an area with a majority Newar population. However, this year, Congress has given tickets to only 2 Newar candidates out of 15, in Lalitpur-2 and 3.

Former Chairman of Kathmandu Congress and former Minister Bhimsen Das Pradhan states that the party failed to maintain ethnic and religious balance in ticket distribution. Pradhan says that because the balance in ticket distribution was not maintained, Congress candidates find it difficult to present a basis when asking for votes.

Pradhan told Ratopati, "Kathmandu is an area with a majority Newar population. Especially Kathmandu 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 have a Newar majority, but senior leaders from the Newar community who have contributed to the party also did not get tickets, which will create difficulties for the party."

Pradhan, who is also the former chairman of the Professors' Association, stated that although not all old leaders are good, it will be difficult because leaders who were doing good work were not given tickets. "The party leadership failed to use wisdom in balancing new and old candidates for tickets."

Meanwhile, Congress leader Lokesh Dhakal claims that the party has changed its leadership and fielded new candidates in line with the spirit of the 'Gen Z' movement. "The Congress is moving forward according to the spirit of the Gen Z movement," Dhakal told Ratopati. "The party leadership has also changed. New and young candidates have been nominated. A favorable atmosphere is building for the party."