KATHMANDU: CPN-UML leader Ishwar Pokharel has been awarded a ticket to contest the House of Representatives election by party chair KP Sharma Oli.
Despite sidelining most leaders who challenged him during the party’s 11th general convention, Oli granted Pokharel a ticket at the final moment. UML Kathmandu district chair Deepak Niraula confirmed that Pokharel will contest from Kathmandu constituency number 5.
According to Niraula, Pokharel’s supporters will gather at Dahalgaunda at 1 pm on Tuesday before proceeding to the Office of the Chief Returning Officer at 2 pm to file the nomination.
Kathmandu-5 had earlier, on Poush 21, unanimously recommended Pokharel’s name for direct election to the House of Representatives. However, Oli had kept the constituency on hold when finalizing candidates two days ago. Kathmandu-5 is Pokharel’s home constituency, where he has regularly contested elections.
So far, Oli has granted tickets only to Gokarna Bista from the Pokharel camp, who emerged victorious in the 11th general convention. Other leaders from the same panel, including Yogesh Bhattarai, Karna Bahadur Thapa, Gokul Baskota, Thakur Gaire, Jhapat Rawal and Surendra Pandey, were denied tickets. Leaders previously associated with the Madhav Nepal faction, such as Bishnu Rijal and Niraj Acharya, were also left out.
In the 2079 BS general election, Pokharel was defeated in Kathmandu-5 by Nepali Congress candidate Pradeep Paudel. Of the 45,987 votes cast, Paudel secured 15,237 votes, while Pokharel received 10,172, losing by a margin of 5,065 votes.
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