Janta Samajwadi Party Leader Mahanta Thakur Fields Daughter in Mahottari-3, Faces Internal Dissent and Strong Competition

Kathmandu. Mahanta Thakur, patron of the Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) Nepal, has fielded his daughter, Dr. Meenakshi Jha, in politics after he became a member of the National Assembly. He has nominated his daughter Meenakshi as a candidate in Mahottari-3, a constituency he has won multiple times.

Thakur, who is over 80 years old, has introduced his daughter into politics as his successor. To ensure his daughter wins the election, Thakur himself has taken up residence in a hotel in Jaleshwar, Mahottari.

Although he cannot move around the constituency due to health reasons, he is meeting with leaders, cadres, and well-wishers from where he is staying to create a favorable atmosphere for his daughter. Thakur, who has won the election twice from Mahottari-3, has invested all his political capital in that constituency.

He has ensured that representatives from that area have become ministers at both provincial and federal levels, and he has always centered his programs there. His constituency has never been without a minister.

Whether at the provincial or federal level, someone from that area would become a minister. Rani Sharma Tiwari, who is currently a minister in the Madhes Provincial Government, is also from that constituency. Looking at the statistics from past local, provincial, and federal elections, JSP Nepal appears strong in Mahottari-3.

However, there is an assessment that Meenakshi might be weak simply because she received the ticket based on being Thakur's daughter and has not played a significant role in politics. Although she is a doctor by profession and active in social work, her lack of contribution to politics has caused dissatisfaction within the party.

After Meenakshi received the ticket, JSP leader Harinarayan Yadav, who had been contesting elections for a long time, became disgruntled, left the party, and filed an independent candidacy. Yadav says, 'Meenakshi has no contribution to the party; she hasn't even taken a basic membership yet. But patron Thakur forcefully made her the candidate simply because she is his daughter. The people here understand this well and will settle the score in the election.'

Nevertheless, JSP Nepal leader Dr. Surendra Jha claimed that Meenakshi's position is very strong. He stated that Harinarayan Yadav's candidacy would not affect the party. 'As an old leader of the party, he might cut some votes, that's a different matter. But he cannot be decisive,' he said. 'In every aspect, JSP Nepal is strong in Mahottari-3, so winning the election is almost certain.' Jha mentioned that Thakur himself is staying in Mahottari leading the election campaign and claimed that the Congress is in second place, followed by other parties.

A total of 41 candidates from various parties and independents are in the electoral field in that constituency. The main competition appears to be between Bajrang Nepali of the Nepali Congress, Manoj Singh of the UML, Meenakshi Jha of the JSP, Ujjwal Jha of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), and independent candidate Ramadhar Kaper.

Political analyst Dhruv Ray states that some candidates appear weak due to party switching on the day of candidacy registration. He says, 'Since Harinarayan ji is contesting independently after not getting the ticket from JSP, it will certainly affect the JSP candidate.' Ramadhar Kaper, after not receiving the ticket from UML, has also contested independently, which might cut into UML's votes.

Ramadhar Kaper, who has been a candidate in almost every election, was deprived of the UML ticket at the last moment. He says, 'My single recommendation was made by the party, but I don't know why I wasn't given the ticket in the end. However, the people of Mahottari-3 are in my favor, so my victory is certain.'

Another challenge for Meenakshi is the Nepali Congress. The challenge for Thakur and his daughter has increased as Congress leader Bajrang Nepali, who supported Mahanta Thakur in the 2074 and 2079 elections, is now a candidate himself. With Congress President Gagan Thapa contesting from Sarlahi, the atmosphere for Congress in Madhes has also improved, which seems likely to benefit Bajrang.

Ujjwal Jha, the RSP candidate, was previously in JSP Nepal. After not getting the ticket from JSP, he joined RSP and entered the election fray. Local voters say that Ujjwal cannot be underestimated as the influence of RSP is growing in Madhes. Ujjwal Jha is a resident of Ekdara, the ancestral village of Kathmandu Mayor and senior RSP leader Balendra Shah.

Mahottari-3 has a total of 110,436 voters.