Tehrathum Parliamentary Race Heats Up as CPN-UML Fields Central Secretary for Upcoming Elections

Biratnagar. The electoral battleground in Tehrathum district for the upcoming House of Representatives election on Falgun 21 is becoming interesting. CPN-UML has fielded Central Secretary Bhanubhakta Dhakal in the electoral arena here. Other parties have nominated district-level leaders as candidates.

In past elections, CPN-UML has been the dominant force in the district, with the Nepali Congress consistently in contention. However, this time, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and the Shram Sanskriti Party have added challenges for both CPN-UML and Nepali Congress, similar to the national trend. As the popularity graphs of CPN-UML and Nepali Congress decline, the Nepali Communist Party, RSP, and Shram Sanskriti Party have intensified their election campaigns.

Bhanubhakta Dhakal has returned to his home district of Tehrathum with the aim of making a political comeback. Dhakal, 64, who served as a proportional representation MP in the second Constituent Assembly in 2070 BS and was elected from Morang-3 in the 2074 BS election, subsequently becoming a minister, was defeated by Congress's Dr. Sunil Sharma by a wide margin of over 22,000 votes in the 2079 BS election in Morang-3.

Dhakal, from Okhre, Chhathar Rural Municipality-6, is contesting a direct election from his home district for the first time. Dhakal states that his candidacy is for development and prosperity, and he is seeking votes from the public.

However, rival parties are leveling allegations against him, such as corruption in the procurement of health supplies (Omni scandal) when he was the Health Minister during the COVID-19 period, and claiming he sought a safe seat in Tehrathum because he was facing defeat elsewhere. Dhakal is currently in a position where he has to respond to these allegations.

Kishore Chandra Dulal, a leader from CPN-UML Tehrathum, claims that Dhakal does not face such allegations in the district. "He hasn't caused any trouble in the district. It's just propaganda from outside; there is no such difficulty here in the district," Dulal said. "We have complete confidence that Bhanubhakta Dhakal will be victorious."

He added that the Congress candidate was defeated in the Provincial Assembly election, suggesting he has no chance of winning. "I think he will come in second," Dulal said.

CPN-UML is campaigning using two teams: one for direct votes and one for proportional representation votes. Dhakal, who is also a candidate, is the coordinator of one team. The proportional representation candidate is Bishnu Maya Bik. "Both of them will coordinate. On the other hand, our District Party Committee Chairman is commanding as the other commander," Dulal stated.

Dulal claims that CPN-UML is the leading force in Tehrathum. "The Nepali Congress is the second force. After that, the Nepali Communist Party or the Rastriya Swatantra Party will come in third," he said. He estimates that the candidate from Harka Sampang's Shram Sanskriti Party will not garner many votes.

In the electoral field of Tehrathum, the Nepali Congress has nominated young leader Santosh Subba. Congress candidate Subba was defeated by CPN-UML's Kishorechandra Dulal by a margin of 208 votes in the 2079 BS election for Tehrathum Provincial Assembly 'A'. This is Subba's first contest for the House of Representatives.

Subba stated that his defeat in the Provincial Assembly was respectable and claimed he would win now as the atmosphere is much better. He identified his main competitor as CPN-UML, asserting that other parties besides Congress and CPN-UML are competing for the third position. "RSP is getting some mention. It doesn't seem like they will emerge as a major force. I think the contest will be between NCP and RSP for third place," Subba said.

He dismissed reports of internal disputes within the Congress, claiming historic unity in the party this time. "The internal situation of the party is one of historic unity this time. The party is united. My candidacy serves as a milestone for that," he said.

He mentioned that it is easier to compete because his party's previous proportional representation votes were nearly equal to CPN-UML's. "Voters and the district populace are paying special attention to our party's issue of generational transition. Therefore, I am the second-generation leadership. Furthermore, I am someone who has continuously stayed and served in the district until now. Because of that, I feel that the voters have some trust in me," he said. "The rival party, CPN-UML, and its candidate have rejected the Gen-Z movement from the past, and there is significant negative commentary regarding his actions while in government. His popularity has decreased. Therefore, my understanding is that it is politically difficult for him."

He further stated that the public understands that they have reconstructed the party compared to CPN-UML, and the second special general convention prioritized accountability and responsibility towards the people.

Meanwhile, the Nepali Communist Party has nominated Randhaj Kankangwa for this election. Durga Prasad Chapagain Sachin, a leader of the Nepali Communist Party Tehrathum, claimed his candidate would win, arguing that CPN-UML candidate Dhakal is unable to face past allegations, and the public is not attracted to the Congress candidate.

"There will be a triangular contest here. It's a contest between Congress, CPN-UML, and NCP. Our candidate is an old leftist leader. He was a Constituent Assembly member in '64 BS and was involved in the identity-based movement recently," Chapagain said. "Everyone considers him an honest, principled, and sacrificing leader. Therefore, NCP's victory is assured as our candidate is a leader who now champions the identity issue."

He stated that Congress is mentally divided and its previous standing is gone because Sita Gurung did not get the ticket. He analyzed that although RSP and Shram Sanskriti Party are campaigning, they will not secure many votes due to a lack of organizational base.

In the Tehrathum electoral field, besides Dhakal and Subba, the candidates are Er. Surendra Karki from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and Subindra Kumar Limbu from the Shram Sanskriti Party. Twelve candidates have filed nominations from 12 parties in the district.

In the last House of Representatives election in 2079 BS, Congress's Sita Gurung, who was a candidate from the then CPN (Maoist Centre) alliance in Tehrathum, was victorious. She secured 19,707 votes, while the closest competitor, CPN-UML's Bijay Subba, secured 18,631 votes. In the 2074 BS election, CPN-UML's Bhawaniprasad Khapung won from the Left Alliance.

In the 2079 BS election's proportional representation votes, CPN-UML received 17,258, Congress received 14,606, the then Maoist received 3,066, and RSP received 2,188 votes. According to the District Election Office Tehrathum, 93 polling centers have been designated across 56 polling stations throughout the district. There are a total of 73,137 voters here.