The slogan "Don't be fooled by the illusion of a middleman parliamentary system" written on the wall of a house in Thabang village in Rolpa has faded as it fades. The house of former Maoist fighter Ajay Gharti Magar is located next to the same wall.

Gharti Magar is a district member of the CPN-Maoist led by Netra Bikram Chand. Since Chand's party, which has been boycotting the elections since the 2070 Constituent Assembly, is participating in the elections for the first time, Gharti Magar has started going door to door to understand Thabang's election activities. 

Thabang is a village known as the then Maoist base area within the district of Rolpa, the origin of the 10-year Maoist armed conflict. During the Maoist armed conflict that began on 1 Falgun 2052, nearly 1,000 people lost their lives in Rolpa alone. The number of people killed, missing, injured and mutilated in Thabang alone is 300. 

This village, where the Maoists started a war against the parliamentary system, is now heated by the atmosphere of the parliamentary elections to be held on 21 Falgun. The CPN-Maoist, coordinated by Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and the Maoists led by Chand are facing each other in the elections. Chand had formed the CPN-Maoist after breaking away from the Maoists led by Dahal.

Chand had registered a party with the Election Commission for election purposes on November 2. This is why the election atmosphere has heated up once again in Thabang, where votes have been divided between those in favor and those against the election since the Panchayat period. Sometimes returning empty ballots to the district headquarters and sometimes boycotting the election, this time it seems that Thabang will vote enthusiastically. 

The vote here seems to have been divided after the split in the communist party that Thabang has trusted. CPN-Maoist member Gharti Magar claimed that the main competition will be between the CPN and the Chand-led Maoists. ‘Although we have boycotted the election before, this time we are participating to utilize the election,’ he said.

Chand was recommended as a single candidate from here. The news of his candidacy had increased the election excitement from the district headquarters Libang to Thabang. However, Chand, who had initially announced that he would be a candidate for the House of Representatives from Rolpa, has backed down from that decision. "Since he will not contest the election, discussions are underway to field another candidate. We will make the decision public with the name of the candidate on Tuesday," said party Politburo member Chudamani Wali Adarsh.

The settlement, which is far from the Rolpa district headquarters, which had a huge voter turnout in the first Constituent Assembly election in 2064, gained attention by boycotting the 2070 election. The election was boycotted in Thabang when Mohan Vaidya and Chand separated from the then Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Before that, Thabangi had sent all the ballot boxes empty to the district headquarters in the referendum held in 2038 BS. 

According to the results of previous elections in Rolpa, the NCP is seen as the main political force. The Congress and the UML are the main competitors. In the 2074 BS representative and provincial assembly elections, the Maoist Center contested in an alliance with the UML and in 2079 BS with the Congress. Barshaman Pun was victorious from both alliances.

In 2079, Pun won in an election alliance with the Congress by securing 41,714 votes. His opponent, Purna Budhamagar of the UML, secured 16,485 votes. In 2074, Pun won the election in an alliance with the UML by securing 42,084 votes, while his opponent, Ammar Singh Pun of the Congress, secured 20,337 votes.

In the 2064 Constituent Assembly election, the then Maoist Jaipuri Gharti and Chairman Dahal won by a large margin from Rolpa-1 and Rolpa-2, respectively. Santosh Budha was elected in the by-election held after Dahal left Rolpa. In the second Constituent Assembly election in 2070, the Maoist Krishna Bahadur Mahara and Onsari won from Rolpa-2. After the restructuring in 2073, Rolpa became a single constituency. Since then, Pun has been getting elected.

Leader Pun is also the CPN candidate in Rolpa this time. This time, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is also contesting the election from Rolpa. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has fielded Balram Thapa as its candidate. The UML has fielded Gokul Gharti as its candidate. The Congress has decided to field economist and youth leader Dr. Sudan Kumar Wali as its candidate. He was previously a member of the Lumbini Provincial Planning Commission. Dr. Wali, 35, a resident of Iribang, Parivartan Rural Municipality in Rolpa, has a PhD in economics from China. 

The then Maoists have considered Rolpa as their stronghold since it was the main base area for the armed conflict. In the first Constituent Assembly member election after the peace process in 2064, party chairman Dahal won from this area and became the Prime Minister. He had also announced that development here would be given top priority. However, locals complain that development has not been implemented as announced. This time, Dahal is fielding his candidacy from Rukumpur, which is connected to Thabang.

Purna KC, a central member of the NCP, said that the former Maoists have gained more power in the area controlled by them in this election. According to him, Rolpa and Rukum are the party's strongholds because they are base areas. ‘These areas are still our areas of control, and unity with many parties has made us stronger. Our victory in the election is certain,’ he claimed. 

Congress District President Kishore Kumar Acharya said that preparations for the election have already begun. ‘We have been mobilizing cadres from the ward level to set the Congress agenda. We are also preparing an election strategy,’ he said. He said that there will be an election competition with the NCP.

Even though Pun Thabang, who has won elections many times before, came to power and strength with the votes of Thabang, the locals complained that he did not contribute much to the district. Therefore, some say that Rolpa can choose a new party and candidate. Gobin Bishwakarma, principal of a private school in Thabang, said that the cadres are happy that Chand’s party will participate in the election. He said that discussions and discussions have started again in favor of the families of the injured, disabled, missing and martyred during the then armed conflict. 

Santosh Budha Magar, 29, who was met at Jaljala Skate Park in Thabang village, said that the election atmosphere is heating up in Rolpa. "I am thinking of not participating in the election atmosphere. If I do participate, I will work hard to win the new face," he said. He said that he will vote for a new candidate who can manage health, education, and development in the village.