KATHMANDU: The election of the All Nepal National Independent Students Union (Revolutionary), or ANNISU-R, the student organization of the CPN (Maoist Center), is being held on 12th Magh.
Student leaders under the age of 32 have got an opportunity for the first time in the upcoming election for the new leadership.
This is the first time ANNISU-R has imposed an age limit on student leaders. When the 23rd National Conference was held in the second week of Ashwin, the election could not be held due to the age limit dispute.
A new leadership is being selected after the term of Pancha Singh, who became the first female president in the history of ANNISU-R, ends. Pancha was unanimously led by Maoist Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ on 27th Asoj 2078.
On Wednesday, six leaders have filed their candidacies for the presidency. According to the election committee, Bijay Prakash Sharma Sapkota, Hemanta Rai, Sudin Poudel, Upesh Yadav, Bishwamani Thapa and Yogendra Budha have filed their candidacies for the presidency. All of them are preparing to contest the election.
Prachanda had discussed the election with the chair, general secretary and some vice-chair candidates on Tuesday. Leaders close to Prachanda say that the election was held after efforts to reach a consensus in collective and separate discussions proved impossible.
A Maoist official told Khabarhub, “The chair held separate and collective discussions with the office bearers. Since consensus was not possible, the decision was made to proceed with the election.”
The election for the 9 vice-chairs in the revolutionary party includes Muna Thapa Magar, Biraj Thapa, Muna Kapri, Janak Batala, Devaki Karki, Mamta Adhikari, Atal Acharya, Gyanu Khadka, Deepa Jaisi, and Manisha Acharya. The secretary of the previous term and the provincial vice-chair are in the fray for the vice-chair.
Roshan Thapa Magar, Roshan Khadka, Prateek Karki, Shiva Basnet, Padam Kafle, Tirsana Hamal, Govinda Baniya, Sanjeev Phuyal, Sanjay Kumar Mahato and Shyam Roka have filed their candidacies for the election of a general secretary.
Now, 9 deputy general secretaries and 12 secretaries will be selected from the election. Bhuvan Singh Bista, Jatil Karki, Resam Adhikari, Prakash Adhikari, Nirmala Gautam, Bishnu Dhungana and others have filed their candidacies for the post of deputy general secretary. Phulmaya Rana and Parbata Chaulagain have filed their candidacies for the post of treasurer.
Panels Backed by Leaders
In ANNISU-R’s election, panels have formed based on Maoist leaders’ alignments. From Prachanda’s panel, Bijay Prakash Sharma Sapkota is the candidate for chair, while Sanjay Mahato and Tirsana Hamal are candidates for general secretary. Prachanda is also arranging panels for other leadership positions and members.
From the panel of Maoist Deputy General Secretary Janardan Sharma, Hemanta Rai is running for chair, Roshan Thapa for general secretary, and Phoolmaya Rana for treasurer. Sharma has fielded candidates through his panel.
From Deputy General Secretary Barshaman Pun’s panel, Sudin Paudel is running for chair, and Roshan Khadka for general secretary. Biraj Thapa, a lawyer, is a candidate for vice-chair. Pun is finalizing other candidates in his panel.
Similarly, from Senior Vice Chair Narayan Kaji Shrestha’s panel, Upadesh Yadav is the candidate for chair, while Sanjeev Phuyal and Prateek Karki are running for general secretary. Shrestha is reportedly trying to reconcile between the two general secretary candidates.
9 polling stations across the country
A total of 2,428 representatives are voting at polling stations designated in each province. There are seven polling stations in seven provinces. Elections are being held in 9 places, including the Valley Special Province, University Province, and Technical District.
According to Election Officer Muktinath Pradhan, 900 votes were cast in favor of imposing an age limit and 879 in favor of opening it.
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