Although formal election campaign is yet to begin for the general election, candidates are engaged in visiting their constituencies and meeting the voters. After visiting his ancestral district Dhanusha in Madhes Province, and his constituency in Jhapa district of Koshi Province in Eastern Nepal, former Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah ‘Balen’ has reached Dadeldhura, Darchula, Achham and Baitadi districts of Sudur Paschim Province and Dailekh, Surkhet and Kalikot of Karnali Province as part of his silent election tour.
Prime Ministerial candidate Balen, who is challenging ousted Prime Minister and CPN-UML chair K.P. Oli in Jhapa 5 constituency returned to Kathmandu on Saturday after his two week long silent campaign in Eastern and Western Nepal districts.
Balen’s celebrity like election campaign was unique, in a sense that he didn’t usually spoke to the voters formally address the people, but just shake and wave hands with the people and ring the bell he carried in front of the crowd, signaling voters to cast their votes in his election symbol ‘Bell.’
Wherever he goes hundreds of people of all age groups including children, youths, women and senior citizens greet him come close to his car to have a glimpse, take selfie and even ask for autographs,” according to sources close to the Rastriya Swotantra Party. They even chant slogans in his favour in a spontaneous manner. As Balen remained engaged in meeting people in the streets of Sudur Paschim in the far-West Nepal, his spouse Sabina Kafley was busy visiting door to door in Jhapa 5, his constituency located in Koshi Province in Eastern Nepal, said the party’s sources. In the past two weeks Balen have visited at least 16 election constituencies in Eastern and Western Nepal to meet various RSP candidates as well as voters.
Meanwhile, addressing an election related meeting at the party’s central office in Kathmandu on Saturday coordinator of Nepali Communist Party Pushpakamal Dahal “Prachanda” has underscored the need to forge unity among communist parties “to protect national sovereignty by defeating all types of conspiracies of reactionary forces and foreign elements.”
“The upcoming election is happening in a special circumstance, I take this opportunity to save Nepal from the ongoing national crisis through the election,” remarked the former Prime Minister addressing his party cadres. “We are moving forward with the determination of building new national forces for which we have unified more than 20 political groups to form the Nepali Communist Party,” he pointed out. “Now I am running into 72 years and I will still have courage to struggle for the next few years,” he maintained and added, “those of you, who are around 40 have enough time and opportunities. “
Speaking at a separate programme in Kathmandu on Saturday another Prime Ministerial candidate, Nepali Congress president, Gagan Thapa said, his party Nepali Congress will work towards creating youth employments within the country, so that they should not go abroad for foreign jobs. Both Prachanda and Thapa have just returned to Kathmandu after visiting their election constituencies in Rukum East and Janakpur – 4.
“If you cannot elect reliable candidate or party in the election, the country will turn into a laboratory,” warned Nepali Congress spokesperson Devraj Chalise speaking at another programme in the capital Saturday. He claimed that Nepali Congress is moving forward withi new faces, new programmes and policies, adding party will never become obsolate only individuals may become. “Out of 165 constituencies under the direct election the Nepali Congress has presented 106 new faces,” said Chalise.
In the mean time, Vice president Ram Sahaya Yadav has said, an environment should be created so as to ensure each and every voter can exercise his or her voting right in a free, fair and fearless manner. Speaking at a programme in Kathmandu, he said, “an environment that guarantees free, fair and impartial election is the foundation of the federal democratic republic system.”
