Nepal Chamber of Commerce Election: Leadership Race Heats Up

Kathmandu. The election for the future leadership of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry is taking place on Tuesday. The election schedule is set for Tuesday, following the conclusion of the inaugural session of the Federation's 60th Annual General Meeting on Monday. Voting will take place from 8 AM to 4 PM on Tuesday, the Federation informed. A government with nearly a two-thirds majority has been formed in the country following the general elections. The private sector is delighted by the formation of a stable government. However, the private sector is in a state of fear following the recent arrest of former presidents and other businesspersons of the Federation in various cases. Amidst this fear, the umbrella organization of the private sector is preparing to elect its future leadership through the Federation's election.

The inaugural session was completed on Monday with the Minister of Finance, Dr. Swarnim Wagle, as the chief guest. According to the current bylaws of the Federation, the current Senior Vice President Anjan Shrestha will automatically become the President. The remaining positions will be filled through elections.

Businesspersons are competing for leadership by forming two panels. Therefore, a tug-of-war has begun for the position of Senior Vice President, which represents the future leadership line of the Federation. Hemraj Dhakal and Ramchandra Sanghai, and Surkrishna Vaidya and Bharat Raj Acharya are being discussed as candidates for the Senior Vice President position, the second-in-command of the Federation.

According to the Federation's Election Committee, elections are being held for 73 positions except for President and Treasurer. A total of 137 candidates are competing for these 73 positions. The Election Committee stated that 137 industrialists and businesspersons are competing in various clusters under the District/City, Commodity, Associates, Bi-national Chamber of Commerce, and Founding Group. Representatives from a total of 1,892 organizations from various clusters will vote for the candidates.

According to the Election Committee, elections will be held for two Vice President positions from District/City, fifteen Open Members, two Women Members, and two Central Executive Committee Members from each province, totaling fourteen. According to the Election Committee, Padam Bahadur Shahi and Purichandra Devkota from Karnali Province out of the seven have already been elected unopposed.

Elections will be held for one Vice President from Commodity, thirteen Executive Members, one Women Member, and two Executive Members from Commodity Federations. Similarly, elections will be held for one Vice President, seventeen Central Executive Members, and two Women Members from Associates.

Likewise, elections will be held for one Executive Member position from the Bi-national Chamber of Commerce. Furthermore, elections will be held for two Executive Member positions from the Federation's Founding Member Group.

According to the final list of candidates published on the evening of April 18, a total of 137 candidacies have been finalized for the 73 positions to be elected in this manner.

Former Presidents Support Dhakal Panel

Hemraj Dhakal, the current Commodity Vice President of the Federation, has announced his candidacy for Senior Vice President along with his panel. Dhakal, who has been preparing for about two years, has received strong support from former presidents.

At his candidacy announcement event, he received support from the current President Chandra Prasad Dhakal and former presidents Pashupati Murarka, Chandiraj Dhakal, and Ravibhakt Shrestha. Former president Chandiraj Dhakal, who holds influence in the Federation's politics, is Hemraj's elder brother.

In Dhakal's panel, Jyotsna Shrestha, the current Associate Vice President, is again a candidate for Associate Vice President. Similarly, Nareshlal Shrestha, who received the highest votes in the previous election, is a candidate for Commodity Vice President, and Kalpana Gaire and Umesh Dalmiya are candidates for District/City Vice President. Kamala Shrestha has been announced as the candidate for the proposed Women Vice President.

Anjan Shrestha Panel

Another panel is in the electoral field with the support of Anjan Shrestha for Senior Vice President. This panel is preparing to field either Ramchandra Sanghai or Vice President Surkrishna Vaidya for Senior Vice President. However, the names have not been revealed yet. The Shrestha group is also in the electoral field with its team announced.

In the Shrestha panel, the candidate for Associate Vice President is Prabaljung Pandey, Chairman of Citizens Bank and Director of Lomas Group. The candidate for Commodity Vice President is Shivaprasad Ghimire, a petroleum and hydropower entrepreneur, and the candidates for District/City Vice President are Krishnaprasad Sharma and Dilsundar Shrestha.

Pandey, the candidate for Associate Vice President, has the support of former president Bhavani Rana. Pandey is considered strong in the Associates due to the legacy of his father Pradipjung Pandey and his own maturity. After the upcoming term of the Federation, the selection of the President will be through a direct election system. The provision of the Senior Vice President automatically becoming the President has been removed by amending the bylaws at the initiative of the incumbent President Chandra Prasad Dhakal.

However, this new system will only be implemented from the term after the current Senior Vice President Anjan Shrestha automatically becomes President. According to the amended bylaws, there will now be two Senior Vice Presidents in the Federation, and the number of Women Vice Presidents has also been increased by one.

Background of Businesspersons in Dhakal Panel

Leading the Dhakal panel, Hemraj Dhakal is a candidate for the position of Senior Vice President. He is currently the Vice President from the commodity sector. He is the Chairman of Heritage Group. He entered the election with the main agenda of boosting the economy in collaboration with the government, ensuring good governance, and guaranteeing investment security, having coordinated oxygen and medicine supply during the COVID pandemic.

Nareshlal Shrestha is a candidate for Vice President from the commodity sector. He is also the operator of Bagmati Arts & Handicrafts. Shrestha has filed his candidacy with the agenda of promoting Nepali products and handmade paper in the international market.

Jyotsna Shrestha is herself in the electoral field again for Associate Vice President. She currently holds the same position. She is the operator of Merigold Jewelers. Having won the election from Ramchandra Sanghai's group last time, she has joined the Dhakal panel this time.

Kalpana Gaire is a candidate for District/City Vice President. She operates health businesses in Palpa, Kathmandu, and Dhangadhi and is an executive member of the Federation. Umesh Dalmiya is a candidate for District/City Vice President. He is the operator of Radio Vision and a former president of the Birtamod Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and currently the coordinator of the Federation's fair committee.

Kamala Shrestha has filed her candidacy for the proposed Women Vice President. She is the operator of Sayam Institute of Hair Design & Beauty Care and is currently the Chairperson of the Federation's Women Entrepreneurs Development Committee.

Anjan Shrestha Panel, Who is Who?

Anjan Shrestha will automatically become the President according to the Federation's bylaws. However, he has also formed his group. A panel is in the electoral field with his support. The candidate for Senior Vice President for this panel has not yet been finalized.

However, Shivaprasad Ghimire is in the electoral field for Commodity Vice President. He is also a former president of the Nepal LP Gas Industry Association. He has filed his candidacy with the commitment to make the role of commodity associations within the Federation more effective and empowered.

Prabaljung Pandey is the candidate for Associate Vice President. He is the Chairman of Citizens Bank. He has also been involved in the cement and pharmaceuticals industries for a long time. Krishnaprasad Sharma is a candidate for District/City Vice President. Sharma, who is the President of the Federation's Lumbini Province, is an exporter of handicrafts.

Dilsundar Shrestha is a candidate for District/City Vice President. He is a former president of the Dhulikhel Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Candidates are busy with meetings for the election to be held on Tuesday.