Upper Mustang sees little election activity amid winter migration

By Hari Krishna Sharma, Mustang, Feb 2: Most settlements in Lomanthang and Lo-Ghekar Damodarkunda rural municipalities of Upper Mustang remain deserted, with markets and villages appearing lifeless. The main doors of hotels, shops, and private homes are locked, while villages and surrounding areas are completely blanketed in snow.

Amid extreme cold and heavy snowfall, around 80 percent of locals from Lomanthang and Lo-Ghekar Damodarkunda rural municipalities have migrated to lower regions to escape the winter.

Those who moved down in November and December have not yet returned, resulting in a lack of election-related activities ahead of the upcoming House of Representatives election.

Except for a few caretakers, elderly residents, and some locals, elected representatives, business owners, and the general public are currently outside the district. As a result, election candidates have not entered the upper region after filing their nominations.

According to locals, major settlements including Charang, Lomanthang, Chhoser, Chhonhup, Ghami, and Surkhang areas with relatively larger populationsare unlikely to see significant activity before the month of February.

For the main contest scheduled on March 5, candidates contesting the House of Representatives seat Yogesh Gauchan Thakali of the Nepali Congress, Indra Dhara Dadu Bista of the CPN-UML, Ngutuk Gurung of the Nepal Communist Party, and Adhitiya Chandra Thakali of the Rastriya Swatantra Party have shifted their focus to voters currently residing in Pokhara and Kathmandu immediately after filing their nominations. 

The two rural municipalities of Upper Mustang have a total of 3,553 registered voters.

CPN-UML candidate Bista said, "Election campaigning in villages has not been possible as voters from the upper region are currently outside the district. We have focused our election campaign on voters residing outside the district,” he said, adding that he plans to return to the villages with voters in February."

Bista is contesting a parliamentary election for the first time from the upper region.

Nepali Congress candidate Thakali said he is focusing on meeting voters and formulating election strategies, conducting campaign activities in areas convenient for voters.

 Due to the winter season, he said it has become necessary to contact voters residing permanently or temporarily in various cities outside the district rather than focusing on settlements. 

“I am moving forward with a planned schedule and intend to travel across the country to meet voters,” he said.

Meanwhile, candidates Ngutuk Gurung of the Nepal Communist Party and Adhitiya Chandra Thakali of the Rastriya Swatantra Party have been engaged in door-to-door campaigns among voters living in Kathmandu since early morning.

As candidates left the district immediately after filing nominations on Janaury 20 to campaign where voters are currently residing, election activities have also remained subdued in the lower Mustang rural municipalities of Thasang, Gharapjhong, and Baragung Muktikshetra. More than 50 percent of voters from the lower region are currently outside the district.

The lower region has a total of 7,775 voters. Schools in Upper Mustang have been operating mobile schools in districts such as Pokhara and Tanahun, while the three local governments in the lower region have declared winter vacations, prompting parents to leave the district with their children. The severe cold has further hindered election-related gatherings and activities.

In the past, local elections were held in April and federal and provincial elections in November, which did not require candidates to search for voters in this manner. However, with elections scheduled in March this time, candidates are facing unprecedented difficulties, and election expenses are also expected to rise significantly.

Mustang district, which consists of a single electoral constituency, has a total of 11,328 voters across 39 polling stations in Thasang,  Gharapjhong Rural Municipality,  Varagung Muktichhetra, Lo-Ghekar Damodarkunda Rural Municipality, and Lo Manthang Rural Municipality.