KATHMANDU: Following Sudurpashchim, the Nepali Communist Party (NCP) led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ is rapidly finalizing its candidates for the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5 in Koshi Province.
NCP leader Haribol Gajurel confirmed that the party has finalized candidates for nine constituencies in the province, with tickets approved by party coordinator Prachanda.
For Jhapa-1, young leader Ashesh Ghimire, formerly a politburo member of the NCP Unified Socialist, has been selected. The seat was won in 2079 by Nepali Congress’s Bishwa Prakash Sharma, who will not contest this time.
In Jhapa-5, youth leader Ranjit Tamang has received the ticket; he will face competition from Balendra Shah of the Rastriya Swatantra Party.
In Bhojpur, NCP has nominated young leader Ajambar Kangmang Rai, who will compete against CPN-UML secretary and former Koshi Province Chief Minister Sherdhan Rai, as well as Nepali Congress’s Balkrishna Thapa.
In Taplejung, the party has given the ticket to Khel Prasad Budhathoki, who was defeated by UML’s Yogesh Bhattarai in 2070. UML chairman KP Sharma Oli is reportedly preparing to nominate Khshitij Thewa for the same constituency.
Panchthar will see Harka Bahadur Nembang contesting. Former winner from Panchthar, Basanta Nembang of UML, is seriously ill, so the party may field another candidate.
In Sunsari-1, Surya Prasad Bhattarai ‘Manoj’, a well-known ward chairperson from Dharan, will contest. He will face competition from Dharan Mayor Harka Sampang.
In Morang, Amanlal Modi has received the ticket for constituency No. 4. For Morang-5, Shivkumar Mandal is the candidate, and in Morang-3, Dr. Deuman Sambahamphel is confirmed. All three candidates have been approved by coordinator Prachanda.
The nomination for direct elections will be held on Magh 6. Since its announcement on Kartik 19, the NCP has now merged 20 parties and has already finalized candidates in Sudurpashchim Province.
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