PAANCHTHAR: Nepali Congress leader Shekhar Koirala has claimed that his party would win the race of the second phase of local level elections scheduled on June 28.

Speaking to journalists in Phidim of Panchthar district on Tuesday morning, NC leader Koirala asserted that this time NC candidates were picked on merit basis based on their qualification and contribution to the party. He further said that the nominations were not filed in the manner the party’s central leadership had chosen in the first phase of local polls.

Meanwhile, he said “CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli has termed himself as a nationalist and kept people in dark.’’

In the context, Koirala opined that notions of separate nationalism and radical nationalism should not spread in the Hill and Tarai while not in government.

Nepali Congress had secured second position in the first phase of local level election by winning in 104 local levels while the UML had won in 125 local levels.