KATHMANDU: The candidacy of Dr. Lekh Jung Thapa, fielded by the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) for the upcoming Rupandehi-3 by-election, has sparked a wave of debate on social media.
The discussion emerged after social media users cited a provision mentioned in a press release issued by Election Commission spokesperson and Joint Secretary Nita Pokharel Aryal on July 20. The provision states that individuals whose names remain on the closed list of proportional representation (PR) candidates from the 2022 federal and provincial elections cannot contest in upcoming polls.
Since Dr. Thapa’s name had been included in the PR closed list under the Nagarik Unmukti Party during the 2022 provincial elections, questions were raised over his eligibility to run in the November 3 by-election.
Highlighting this point, many social media users on Thursday morning posted Thapa’s photo while questioning his candidacy. Nagarik Unmukti Party General Secretary Thakur Singh Tharu said he was unaware of Thapa’s name being officially withdrawn from the closed list.
“Our party itself must withdraw his name from the list, but I have not received any information about that happening,” Tharu told Khabarhub.
However, the Election Commission clarified that there is no issue with Thapa’s candidacy. According to EC Information Officer Suman Ghimire, Thapa’s name had already been formally removed from the PR closed list. “A proposal to withdraw his name was submitted on July 31, and the commission’s meeting on August 5 decided to remove him,” Ghimire explained.
Despite this, Thapa’s name still appears on the Commission’s official website. Asked about this inconsistency, Ghimire responded that the matter needed to be checked with the commission’s IT department.
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