Senior leader Jhalnath Khanal of the Unified Socialist Party has declared his decision to abstain from contesting the upcoming by-election in Ilam-2 slated for April 27. In a conversation with Khabarhub, Khanal announced his resolve not to vie for candidacy, instead opting to endorse a youthful representative from within his party.
Khanal articulated, “I am foregoing candidacy this time around. It’s time for the younger generation to step up. Our youthful comrades are capable of taking the helm.” He specified that the Unified Socialist Party’s candidate would be finalized by Wednesday.
Initially speculated to be a contender from the Left Alliance, Khanal withdrew from the race following the decision of the UML to nominate Suhang Nemwang, the offspring of the late Subash Nemwang, who served as the party’s Vice Chairman.
Meanwhile, the Rastriya Swatantra Party has declared its intention to put forth a candidate, though the specific nominee remains undisclosed.
It’s noteworthy that in the previous election, CPN-UML candidate Subash Nemwang secured 30,020 votes, narrowly surpassing Nepali Congress leader Dambar Bahadur Khadka, who received 29,906 votes.
Furthermore, the Nepali Congress has informally hinted at nominating district president Dambar Khadka, although an official decision is yet to be reached.
