National Independence Party Wins in Baglung, Traditional Stronghold of Janamorcha Chairman KC

Baglung. The National Independent Party won the election in Baglung, the home district of Chitra Bahadur KC, chairman of the Rastriya Janamorcha (RJ), who has carved out a distinct image in Nepali politics. In Baglung, considered a base area by Janamorcha, an alliance was formed between the Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) and Janamorcha for the House of Representatives election. Janamorcha's Krishna Prasad Sharma Adhikari was in the electoral field representing the alliance.

Adhikari, who entered the fray to protect Chitra Bahadur's legacy, failed to even secure his deposit. Chitra Bahadur, who won from Baglung-1 in the previous election in an alliance with the Congress, considered a strong force last time, was out of the electoral 'race' this time. However, his name is on the proportional representation list. Janamorcha, which failed to cross the 'threshold' in proportional representation in the last election, appears to be struggling again this time.

The question of where Janamorcha's political future lies has arisen after the deposit was forfeited even with the alliance of two parties. The forfeiture of the deposit in a region considered a stronghold has created ripples down to the grassroots level of Janamorcha.

• Alliance with CPN Fails to Save Deposit

In the election held on Falgun 21, Sushil Khadka of RSP won in Baglung-1 with 20,927 votes, while Adhikari of the CPN-Janamorcha alliance received only 4,521 votes. The votes received by Adhikari were not enough to secure the deposit.

The rule states that the deposit is forfeited if 10 percent of the total valid votes are not obtained. There were 47,061 valid votes in this constituency. A minimum of 4,707 votes were required to save the deposit. Adhikari, who worked in Chitra Bahadur's secretariat for a long time, was hopeful of winning by uniting the two parties.

Bhim Bahadur Shrees Rana of the Nepali Congress, who came in second, received 11,944 votes, while Hirabahadur KC of CPN-UML, who was in third place, received only 8,640 votes.

Looking at the proportional representation votes, Janamorcha's vote count appears very low. Based on proportional representation votes, Rastriya Janamorcha stood in fifth place in Constituency No. 1 with 3,597 votes.

In this constituency, RSP secured 22,859 votes, making the Nepali Congress second with 10,185 votes. CPN-UML is in third place, receiving 7,147 votes.

The Communist Party of Nepal (CPN) is in fourth place, receiving 1,919 votes, and RPP received 943 votes.

• Will Chitra Bahadur Be Seen in Parliament Now?

Rastriya Janamorcha has been participating in elections since 2051 BS. Janamorcha achieved victories in various constituencies of Baglung in the 2051 and 2056 elections. After that, Chitra Bahadur KC also became a proportional representation Member of Parliament.

He served as Deputy Prime Minister when KP Sharma Oli was the Prime Minister in 2072 BS. Chitra Bahadur, who last became a federal MP in the 2079 House of Representatives election with the support of the Congress, now has a slim chance of being seen in parliament. Having avoided the direct election this time, his name is on the proportional representation list.

Looking at the vote count so far, Janamorcha has received over 26,000 votes. If Janamorcha, which is on the verge of not crossing the 'threshold' in proportional representation, does not win even a single seat in the direct election, it may not receive proportional representation either.

In the local level elections held in 2079 BS, Rastriya Janamorcha won the position of Mayor in Jaimini Municipality, Chairman in Bareng Rural Municipality, and Deputy Mayor in Kathekhola Rural Municipality and Badigad Rural Municipality. It also won the chairmanship of some wards in the district.

• Deposits Forfeited for Eight Candidates Including Janamorcha

There were 11 candidates in Baglung Constituency Number 1 this time. Among them, the deposits of eight candidates were forfeited. The deposits of candidates from Janamorcha, RPP, Shram Sanskriti Party, PRLOPA, National Republic Nepal, Mongol National Organization, Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), and Nepal Humanist Party were forfeited after they failed to secure 10 percent of the total valid votes.

Kalyan Acharya of RPP received 523 votes, Lalbahadur Gharti of Shram Sanskriti Party received 254, Chitra Sapkota of PRLOPA received 60, Guma Kumari Rana of Mongol National Organization received 40, Tek Bahadur KC of Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) received 80, and Bhaktabahadur Bika of Nepal Humanist Party received 24 votes.

There were 98,046 registered voters in this constituency. Out of these, 48,932 votes were cast.