After the party failed to register with the Election Commission for the by-election in Rupandehi-3, Resham Chaudhary, the patron of the Nagarik Unmukti Party, is preparing to field an independent candidate.
The Federal Democratic Front has already decided to support the candidate fielded by Resham.
However, the front's constituent party, Janamat Party, has decided not to form an alliance with anyone in the election and is preparing to field its own candidate. It has also said that there is no electoral alliance with the front.
Nevertheless, the Janata Samajwadi Party, Loktantrik Samajwadi Party, Janata Pragatisheel Dal, Rastriya Mukti Party, and Tarai-Madhes Loktantrik Party have already decided to make Resham's candidate their common candidate.
NUP patron Resham has already proposed the name of a potential candidate in the front's meeting.
"We will field a scholar, a candidate who can influence society in Rupandehi-3. We have already said in the front's meeting that we will field a PhD holder, and that too from the Tharu community," Resham told Setopati.
He said that the Tikapur uprising has already set a new standard in Nepali politics, which has become the basis for victory in Rupandehi-3. With the front's support, this has become even clearer, he added.
According to a front leader, Chaudhary has proposed fielding Umashankar Chaudhary as a candidate in Rupandehi-3.
A permanent resident of Nawalparasi, Umashankar is a PhD holder and has also worked in the Tharu Commission. He was appointed as a member of the Tharu Commission on June 24, 2021.
Keshav Jha, general secretary of the Rastriya Mukti Party, also said that Umashankar's name was proposed in the front's meeting.
"The names of Dr Umashankar Chaudhary, who have served as a commissioner in the Tharu Commission, and Dr Saroj Chaudhary have come up. We see a strong possibility for Umashankar," he said.
Resham also said that there would no disagreement among the front's constituent parties regarding the name proposed by him.
Dr Saroj Singh Chaudhary, a resident of Bhairahawa, is also a potential candidate. He is a dentist. Saroj Singh is also interested in the field of agricultural commercialization and is an active worker of the NUP. He has also intensified door-to-door campaigns recently.
Tulasi Chaudhary, chairman of the NUP in Rupandehi district, said that the district is working on candidate selection.
"The party could not be registered with the Election Commission. Therefore, we are preparing to field an independent candidate. However, the process of candidate recommendation from the constituency, district, and province will still take place," he said, "No name has been finalized yet."
The by-election is being held for the seat that fell vacant after the death of Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) lawmaker Deepak Bohara, who was elected from Rupandehi-3.
Registration of candidacies for the by-election has been scheduled for October 7.
As the candidate registration date approaches, aspirants have started emerging within various parties.
A total of 26 parties have been registered for the by-election. The registered parties include Mongol National Organization, Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Janamat Party, Rastriya Mukti Andolan Nepal, Janata Samajwadi Party, Nepali Congress, Rastriya Janamorcha, CPN (Maoist Center), Janaprajatantrik Party Nepal, CPN-UML, CPN Marxist (Pushpalal), and Samyukta Nagarik Party.
Additionally, CPN (Unified Socialist), Nepal Samajwadi Party (Naya Shakti), CPN (Marxist-Leninist), Rastriya Prajatantra Party (Nepal), National Republic Nepal, Rastriya Matribhumi Party, Nepali Janata Dal, Rastriya Yatharthawadi Party Nepal, Rastriya Swatantra Party, Nepal Janamukti Party, Hamro Nepali Party, Bahujan Shakti Party, and Khambuwan Rastriya Morcha Nepal have also registered to participate in the election.
Along with party registration, political parties are actively engaged in selecting candidates for the by-election.
The CPN-UML has directed its lower committees to recommend candidates and send them to the center by August 31.
The Nepali Congress is also in the candidate recommendation process. Before the lower levels of the party recommend candidates, General Secretary Bishwa Prakash Sharma visited various areas of Rupandehi Constituency No. 3 to assess the party's current situation.
It is not yet certain whom the NC will give the ticket this time. In the last election, central member Balkrishna Khand contested from the constituency. However, he is currently facing a court case for allegedly sending people to America as fake Bhutanese refugees.
The Unified Socialist has formed a five-member task force led by its Lumbini in-charge, Met Mani Chaudhary, to study the by-election in Rupandehi-3.
The Rastriya Swatantra Party has selected nine preliminary candidates and is conducting an internal competition through its leadership academy. The party plans to announce its candidate through a primary election on August 31.
