Rautahat, September 23

CPN-UML has faced a crushing defeat in the third round of civic polls in Rautahat, the home district of senior party leader and former prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, with the party so far unable to win a single top post. The results of 18 local levels in the district have been out as of today evening.

The party had lost in all constituencies of the district in the first Constituent Assembly elections, earlier. Senior UML leader Nepal, who then contested the election from Constituency No 6, had lost to Debendra Patel of then CPN-Maoist. However, Nepal and Ram Kumar Bhattarai from the party had emerged victorious in the second CA elections from Constituency No 1 and 6 respectively.

In the same elections, Mohammad Mustak Alam from then Madhesi Janadhikar Forum- Democratic, Prabhu Sah and Satya Narayan Bhagat from the Maoist party and Sunil Yadav from Nepali Congress had won in Constituencies No 2, 3, 4 and 5 respectively.

UML has even lost the third round of civic polls in Gaur Municipality, the hometown of leader Nepal. Ajaya Gupta from Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal clinched the mayoral post in the municipality.

UML District Secretary Laxman Regmi said, “The party will analyse the cause for its loss in the civic polls in the district.” Regmi ascribed the party’s crushing defeat in the district to the dissatisfaction among party leaders and voters over the way the UML leadership distributed poll tickets. “The party will make everything public after discussing the matter in the central committee,” he informed.

Civil society member Jagannath Prasad Keshari described the party’s loss as the reflection of voters’s anger at public remarks made by party Chairperson KP Sharma Oli and Madhav Kumar Nepal against Madhesi people.

He was of the opinion that Madhesi people did not trust UML in the election due to the leaders’ approach to Madhes issues. “The situation will get even worse if the party does not mend ways,” Keshari said.