DAMAULI, MARCH 09

The election of veteran politician Ramchandra Paudel as president has brought cheers to the residents of his home district, Tanahun.

Paudel was elected to the post of president today.

He received 33,802 weighted vote against his rival Subas Nembang's 15,518 weighted votes.

'We are happy to get Paudel, who was born in the district and started his political career from here, as our president,' said local social activist Ram Prasad Mishra.

Former Tanahun Chamber of Commerce and Industry vice-chairperson Hari Bahadur Thapa conveyed his happiness at Paudel's accession to the post of president of the country.

'He (Paudel) is a veteran and honest politician who has spent most of his life dedicating himself to politics and it's definitely a matter of pride to find him as the president,' said local Sita Devi Kunwar of Risti, adding, 'The latest political development has put Risti and the whole district into the map.'

Nepali Congress leader Paudel was born in 1944 in Tanahun's then Risti VDC.

He joined politics when he was just 16 years old. He spent a total of 13 years in prison on different occasions before 1990.

A version of this article appears in the print on March 10, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.