Rastriya Swatantra Party's Ashok Kumar Chaudhary Wins Sunsari-3 Seat, Defeating Veteran Leaders

Biratnagar. Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) candidate Ashok Kumar Chaudhary has won the election from Sunsari Constituency No. 3. He secured 47,421 votes, while his closest competitor, Congress leader Bijay Kumar Gachhadar, received only 20,501 votes. Bhagwati Chaudhary of CPN-UML, the winner in the 2079 BS election, finished in third place with 15,083 votes.

Sunsari Constituency No. 3 was once considered a stronghold of Congress leader Bijay Kumar Gachhadar. Bhagwati Chaudhary of CPN-UML managed to break this stronghold in the 2079 BS election. Gachhadar, who contested the election saying it would be his last time then, had been stating that he would contest one more time. Gachhadar approached voters this time saying they should do justice to him and that this was his final battle. However, voters rejected Gachhadar's plea this time and cast their votes for the RSP.

In Sunsari Constituency No.-3, which has a significant population of Tharu and Chaudhary communities, the main competition this time was predominantly among candidates from the Tharu community. Congress leader Gachhadar was in the electoral arena for the eighth time. On one side was Gachhadar, who had reigned supreme for 30 years from 2048 BS to 2074 BS, and on the other side was the intense electoral campaign of Bhagwati Chaudhary of CPN-UML, who had broken his legacy.

This was the fourth electoral contest between Chaudhary and Gachhadar. In the general election of 2079 BS, Bhagwati defeated Gachhadar by about 5,000 votes, putting a full stop to his undefeated streak. Although Bhagwati was aiming to repeat her victory this time, she finished third. However, this time Gachhadar was defeated by a margin of 26,920 votes, while Bhagwati was defeated by an even larger margin of 32,338 votes.

With this election, the political journey of Gachhadar, who has served as a minister 12 times, is nearing its end. In his lifetime, Gachhadar left Congress and became a leader of the Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum. After the Forum split in 2070 BS, he became the leader of the Loktantrik Jana Adhikar Forum. He contested and won the election from the Forum in 2070 BS. In 2074 BS, he returned to his old political home, Congress. Bhagwati was his competitor in the 2074 BS election as well, but Gachhadar won by a narrow margin.

In that constituency, the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) fielded Durgesh Chaudhary, the Shram Sanskriti Party fielded Ramprasad Sada, the Samabeshi Samajwadi Party Nepal fielded Kishorkumar Biswas, and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) fielded Ghanshyam Gurung. However, none of these candidates managed to save their deposits.

Ashok Kumar Chaudhary, a permanent resident of Pachrukhi in Itahari Sub-Metropolitan City, has an educational qualification up to Grade 12. He was a proportional representative in the House of Representatives from RSP in the 2079 BS election. Chaudhary, who is also a central member of the RSP, does not have a long political legacy. Chaudhary, who plays an active role in sports, youth, and social development issues, is considered firm in favor of transparency and accountability in democracy. It is this Chaudhary who has taken the political responsibility of Sunsari-3 by defeating the formidable competitors of the past.