No smooth sailing for three top guns
NEPALGUNJ, OCT 23 -
After suffering a humiliating defeat at his home constituency in Banke-3 in the previous Constituent Assembly election, there is nothing more that Nepali Congress President Sushil Koirala would like than a breezy victory this time.
He cannot afford a consecutive defeat, given his political stature and seniority. Securing a win in the November polls is still not easy for the NC president, but his party supporters believe that he could pull it off.
They said a lot has changed over the last five years and that the situation is favourable for Koirala despite some challenges. Koirala is running against 35 candidates, including Pashupati Dayal Mishra of the Tarai Madhes Loktantrik Party, Dhawal Shumsher Rana of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Damodar Acharya of the UCPN (Maoist) and Bijaya Dhital of the CPN-UML.
His supporters are putting a great deal of effort in publicity campaigns to attract voters. They are promoting Koirala as a national leader and the future prime minister.
During this Dashain holidays, Koirala had spent his time visiting voters at his constituency and wooing them for their support. He is currently doing the same in his second constitueny in Chitwan-4.
Like Koirala, UML leader Bamdev Gautam is also vying from two constituencies, one in Pyuthan-1 and the other in Bardiya-1. Pyuthan-1 is Gautam’s home constituency, where he is squaring off against chief rivals Krishna Khadka of the Rastriya Janamorcha Party, Nawaraj Subedi of the UCPN (Maoist) and Hukum Bahadur Bista of the Nepali Congress. The UML had fielded Dhan Bahadur Rayamajhi from Pyuthan-1 in the previous CA election. UCPN (M) candidate Narayan Adhikari was elected then and Rayamajhi came third.
Gautam has an edge over other candidates in Pyuthan-1 due to his political seniority over other nominees, claimed the UML.
The same cannot be predicted for the UML leader in Bardiya-1, where he had lost to Sarala Regmi of the UCPN (M) in the 2008 polls. Bhuwaneshwor Chaudhary of the NC and Bhuwan Chaudhary of the UCPN (Maoist) are Gautam’s chief competitors.
The situation is also not so favourable for UCPN (M) leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara, who is running from Rolpa-1 this time. He had won from Dang-3 in the last election. Translating the same victory will not be easy for him in Rolpa-1, where the Mohan Baidya-led CPN-Maoist wields influence. Although Mahara has called for the support of the CPN-M to secure victory, the winning prospects of his chief rivals cannot be discounted.
Mahara is battling against Lekhnath Acharya of the NC, Balaram Gharti of Rastriya Prajatantra Party Nepal and Hit Bahadur Roka of the UML.
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