KATHMANDU: CPN-UML leader Ram Bahadur Thapa alias Badal and Dr Khim Lal Devkota representing the opposition alliance have filed their nominations for the by-election of the National Assembly.

Badal and Devkota registered their candidacies at the election office in Hetauda, the capital city of Bagmati Province.

Chief Minister of Bagmati Pradesh Dormani Poudel proposed Badal’s candidacy and it is seconded by Minister for Social Development Saraswati Basnet.

Similarly, Bagmati Pradesh Provincial Party leader of CPN (Maoist Center) Shalik Ram Jamarkattel has proposed Devkota as the candidate and his candidacy is seconded by Nepali Congress Parliamentary Party chief whip Radha Ghale.

Devkota has jointly been fielded by NC, Maoist Center, Janata Samajwasi Party and the Nepal-Khanal faction of ruling CPN-UML.

According to Rajkumar Shrestha, the spokesperson of the EC, a total of 348 voters – 110 provincial assembly members of Bagmati Pradesh, 238 including mayors and deputy mayors of municipalities and chairpersons and vice chairpersons of rural municipalities will cast their votes in the by-elections.

The post of a National Assembly member remained vacant after CPN (Maoist Center) took action against Thapa for defecting to CPN-UML. Thapa had been elected as a member to the National Assembly representing CPN (Maoist Center).

Devkota, who had resigned as the vice chairman of the policy and planning commission of Bagmati Pradesh in 2076 BS, holds PhD in development economics and a fiscal federalism and local government analyst.

Similarly, Nepal Workers and Peasants Party (NWPP) has also registered its candidacy in the by-election of the NA.

NWP leader Krishna Bahadur Tamang has filed his candidacy for the by-election of the NA.

Bagmati Province Assembly member Surendra Raj Gosai Proposed Tamang as the candidate and his candidacy is seconded by Srijana Sainju.

The by-election will be held on May 20.