UML recommends PR nominees, NCP to pick names tomorrow

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Mar. 15: A secretariat meeting of the CPN-UML finalised the names of 16 candidates to be recommended to the Election Commission (EC) for nomination as members of the House of Representatives under the proportional representation (PR) system.

The meeting, held on Saturday at the Gundu-based residence of the party chairman, K. P. Sharma Oli, selected the cluster-based candidates from the closed list the party had submitted to the EC before the election, said Deputy General Secretary Lekhrāj Bhatta. 

The party won 25 seats in the Lower House, including 16 under the PR system and nine from the first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system. The secretariat meeting finalised the nominees accordingly, Bhatta said.

According to Bhatta, under the Khas Arya category, Padma Aryal, Tukabhadra Hamal, Guru Prasad Baral, Pushpa Raj Kandel, and Yashoda Kumari Baral (representing backward regions and persons with disabilities) were recommended.

Likewise, under the indigenous nationalities category, the meeting selected Bhumika Subba, Ganga Devi Shrestha, Ram Bahadur Thapa Magar and Kul Bhakta Shakya.

Similarly, Kripa Ram Rana was selected from the Tharu category, while Bishnumaya BK and Neeta Ghatani were chosen from the 

Dalit category. 

From the Madhesi community, Ringla Yadav, Yashoda Kumari, and Chandreshwar Mandal were picked, and Sajida Siddiqui was selected from the Muslim community, Bhatt said.

Bhatta further informed that the meeting also passed a condolence motion over the death of Mohan Prasad Oli, father of party chair K. P. Sharma Oli. The meeting expressed deep condolences to the chair and the bereaved family.

Likewise, the meeting also paid tribute to Krishna Thapa, party central committee member, who died of a heart attack during the party’s review meeting on March 12 and to Khagendra Rai, former chair of the Janasanskritik Federation, who lost his life during the party’s election campaign. 

However, Bhatta informed that the meeting did not review election results. Review meetings were already being conducted at various levels, including the ward level and reports are being prepared, he added. 

Bhatta further informed that the party was unable to properly communicate the events of September 8 and 9 to the public, while also admitting certain weaknesses within the party. 

However, the Nepali Communist Party (NCP) will pick the nominees for the House of Representatives (HoR) under the proportional representation (PR) system on Sunday.  

The party has called a party meeting on Sunday to pick its PR nominees.

According to Narayan Kaji Shrestha, party coordinator, Puspa Kamal Dahal and co-coordinator Madhav Kumar Nepal have called a meeting to pick the final names of its HoR members through the PR system. 

The party has secured eight seats under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system and nine under the PR category.

Shrestha said the party will finalise the list in the meeting by ensuring representation of all clusters and then submit it to the Election Commission (EC). 

When asked about the review of the House of Representatives (HoR) election held on March 5, Shrestha said, “The party has not yet reviewed the recent election. The other day, we only called the secretariat meeting of the election mobilisation committee to dissolve the committee.”

“At the time, we only had a general discussion, and that cannot be called a review,” he added.

Shrestha said, “First, the party will submit the proportional representation (PR) list, and after that, we are planning to start discussions within the party leadership and among party members.”

The EC on March 12 allocated seats to the six parties that crossed the three per cent threshold required to secure seats in the HoR and asked them to submit the names of their candidates within three days.