KATHMANDU, DECEMBER 19
The Nepali Congress will elect its parliamentary party leader on Wednesday. The decision to this effect was taken today by a three-member election committee formed by the party's central working committee on Sunday.
The committee has published schedule for the election. According to the schedule, the list of voters - names of NC lawmakers in the House of Representatives - was published today and the party asked those who wanted to lodge protests against any voter to do so today itself.
NC lawmakers in the HoR can file nominations for the post of parliamentary party leader from 2:00pm to 5:00pm tomorrow. The first and the final list of candidates will be published tomorrow. Candidates can withdraw their names from the race between 4.30pm and 5.30pm tomorrow. The final list of candidates will be published at 5.45pm tomorrow.
Voting will take place on Wednesday between 8:00am and 10:00am. Those in race for the parliamentary party leader will have to deposit a fee of Rs 51,000.
General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa, former general secretary Shekhar Koirala, senior leader Ramchandra Paudel, and party President and Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will contest for the post of NC PP leader.
Deuba has clear majority in the party as well as among the newly elected party lawmakers. Leaders close to Deuba have said they will try to elect their PP leader unanimously to give a message of unity which will be crucial to win support of other parties for the NC-led government.
The party has won 89 seats in the House of Representatives - 57 under the first-past-thepost election system and 32 under the proportional representation election system. These 89 MPs will elect the PP leader. The PP leader will lead the government if the party decides to form one.
The Shekhar Koirala faction held a meeting in Kathmandu to present the faction's common candidate.
The party's Joint General Secretary Bishma Raj Angdembe is the coordinator of the election committee with Pushpa Bhusal and Prakash Rasaili 'Snehi' as members.
A version of this article appears in the print on December 20, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
