Kathmandu, March 4

As many as 375 persons filed their candidacies for 64 posts of the Central Working Committee in the ongoing National General Convention of the Nepali Congress.

According to the NC’s 13th National General Convention Election Committee Coordinator Radheshyam Adhikari, 365 persons have filed their candidacies for 61 CWC members and 10 leaders have filed candidacies for three top positions president, general secretary and treasurer.

A total of 94 leaders, including three women, have filed nomination for CWC membership in the open category (25 seats). Three women leaders  Sujata Koirala, Niru Pokharel and Mahalaxmi Upadhyay  have chosen to contest in the open category.

NC Acting President Ramchandra Paudel, senior leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and General Secretary Krishna Prasad Sitaula are vying for the post of party president.

Shashank Koirala from Paudel’s panel, Arjun Narsingh KC from Deuba’s panel and Gagan Thapa from Sitaula’s panel are in fray for the post of general secretary.

Sita Devi Yadav from Paudel’s panel, Chitra Lekha Yadav from Deuba’s panel, Uma Kanta Chaudhary from Sitaula’s panel have filed their papers for the post of treasurer, while Krishna Bahadur Karki is competing for the same post as an independent candidate.

Farmullah Mansur deserted Paudel camp and joined Deuba camp today after Paudel named Sita Devi Yadav for the post of treasurer from the establishment’s panel.

Adhikary said the Election Committee would publish the final list of the candidates at 11:00am on Saturday after giving two hours for the candidates to withdraw their candidacy beginning 9:00am.

He said three minor complaints were lodged during the time allocated for questioning the eligibility of the candidates that concluded at 7:00pm today.

According to Gopal Krishna Ghimire, a member of the Election Committee, nine ballot papers will be printed for the posts of president, general secretary and treasurer and categories of CWC members.

He said elections for all the posts would be held on Sunday at Bhrikutimandap. Vote counting of all posts, except president, would be held at NC party office in Sanepa.

Ghimire said votes for president’s post would be counted at City Hall.

As per the party statute, 64 CWC members have to be elected, while 21 can be nominated by the elected party president.

Elected party president can nominate a vice-president, a general secretary and a deputy general secretary from the elected CWC members and one CWC member each from among Dalits, Janajatis, women, Madhesis and Muslims and 16 CWC members from among the representatives of the NGC.