Independent candidate Mahabir Pun wins in Myagdi by wide margin

By Thakur Prasad Acharya, Myagdi, March 7: Independent candidate Dr  Mahabir Pun has been elected to the House of Representatives from Myagdi, winning by a margin of 14,931 votes.

According to the final vote count announced on Saturday morning, Dr Pun, who previously served as the Minister for Education, Science and Technology, secured 22,850 votes, said Chief Returning Officer Surya Bahadur Thapa.

His closest rival Hari Krishna Shrestha of the CPN-UML received 7,919 votes.

According to the Office of the Chief Returning Officer, Karna Bahadur Bhandari of the Nepali Congress secured 6,673 votes, while Arjun Thapa of the Nepali Communist Party obtained 3,530 votes.

Dr Pun maintained a comfortable lead from the early stages of the vote count.

Following his victory, Dr Pun issued a notice urging his supporters not to organize victory celebrations.

He also stated that the vote counting for the proportional representation system will begin shortly after the completion of the direct election vote count.

A total of 12 candidates, including independents, contested in Myagdi, which has only one electoral constituency. Out of 86,397 registered voters in the district, 46,215 votes were cast.