Most of the candidates are new faces, from writers to scientists.
Forty-nine candidates have registered their candidacies in three constituencies of Kaski for the upcoming House of Representatives elections to be held on February 21. According to the Election Office, 18 political parties and six independent candidates have entered the election contest.
However, out of the total 49 candidates, only 5 are women, which is only about 10 percent. The remaining 44 are male candidates. 6 have filed independent candidacies.
This time, most of the new faces have filed their candidacies in Kaski. 17 people have registered their candidacies in Kaski constituency number 1. On Tuesday, the leaders of the main parties and independent candidates submitted their nomination papers at the office of the election officer in Ramghat. 16 political parties and 1 independent candidate are in the election competition in this constituency.
Among the main parties, Nepali Congress central member Tilak Bahadur Ranabhat, UML Kaski president Bain Bahadur Chhetri (official) and central member Rajkaji Gurung from the Nepali Communist Party are in the fray. Writer Khadak Raj Poudel (Ganesh) has filed his candidacy from the National Independent Party. He is a central member of the Rashtriya Swatantra Party. Baburam Thapa is the candidate from the RPP. Among them, Gurung was previously elected as a member of the Constituent Assembly from Kaski in 2064. Similarly, astronomer Manisha Dwa from the Ujjaya Nepal Party, Rabimohan Dhakal from the Rastriya Janamorcha, and Kumar Pariyar from the CPN (Maoist) have filed their candidacies. Ramkaji Charmakar from the Janata Samajwadi Party and Harka Bahadur Thapa from the Aam Janata Party have filed their nominations. Mr. Thapa from the Mongol National Organization, Min Bahadur Darji from the Nepal Janmukti Party, and Yagya Bahadur Gurung from the National Republic Nepal are in the fray. Among other small parties, Ash Bahadur Damai from the Nepal Humanist Party, Karna Bahadur Gurung from the Progressive Democratic Party, and Bil Bahadur Tamang Lama from the Shram Sanskriti Party have filed their candidacies. Krishna Bahadur Raut is an independent candidate.
17 people have filed their candidacies in Kaski Constituency No. 2. Twelve political parties and five independent candidates have filed their nominations. Among the main parties, Madhav Prasad Bastola from the Nepali Congress and Rashmi Acharya, a central member of the UML, are candidates. Hem Bahadur Thapa Parajuli from the NCP and Uttam Prasad Poudel from the National Independent Party have filed their nominations. Hemjung Gurung is in the fray from the RPP.
Among other parties, Prem Bahadur Thapa from the NCP (Maoist), Binita Abal from the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party, energy expert Kushal Gurung from the Ujjaya Nepal Party, Om Bahadur Gurung from the Mongol National Organization and Gyanraj Gurung from the National Republic Nepal are candidates.
Similarly, Khyam Bahadur Gurung from the Nepal Janmukti Party and Deepak Bhandari from the Progressive Democratic Party have filed their nominations. The independent candidates are Bishnu Prasad Tiwari, Ramchandra Acharya, Niranjan Koirala, 26-year-old Bikram Poudel and Basantaraj Ghimire.
15 people have registered their candidacies in Kaski constituency number 3. Candidates from various political parties submitted their nomination papers at the office of the Returning Officer in Malepatan on Tuesday.
Manoj Gurung from Nepali Congress and Damodar Poudel Bairagi from UML have filed their candidacies. Poudel was previously elected from the constituency in 2079. Bina Gurung from the National Independent Party and Gopal Giri from the Nepal Communist Party have become candidates. Arjun Prasad Khanal is in the fray from the RPP.
Among other parties, Kamal Khadka Bishwakarma from the CPN (Maoist), Om Prakash Bishwakarma from the Nepal Matrubhumi Party, Kushal Thapa Chhetri from the Aam Janata Party, Jeevan Bahadur Gurung from the Mongol National Organization, Tek Bahadur Sarki from the Samyukta Nagarik Party and Tarka Bahadur Gurung from the Ujjaya Nepal Party have filed their candidacies.
Similarly, Tirath Gurung from the National Republic Nepal, Min Bahadur Thapa from the Nepal Janmukti Party, Mina Nhisutu from the Nepal Mazdoor Kisan Party and Hitkaji Gurung from the Shram Sanskriti Party have filed their nominations.
The Election Commission had fixed the time for nomination registration on Tuesday from 10 am to 5 pm. During the nomination registration, the candidates reached the office of the Returning Officer with a procession of supporters. The Returning Officer's office has stated that the nomination registration process has been completed successfully.
All the candidates have said that they will start the election campaign with their own agendas. It is expected that there will be a tough competition in all three areas this time. Previously, UML had won all three areas. In 2079, Man Bahadur Gurung won the election in 1, Vidya Bhattarai in 2, and Damodar Poudel Bairagi in 3.
There are a total of 38,572 voters in Kaski. Out of which, 116,878 voters are in Constituency No. 1, 84,134 in 2, and 17,560 voters are in Constituency No. 3. In 2079, there were 291,568 voters, and currently 17,04 new voters have been added.
