The Nepali Congress made a clean sweep in the recently held by-elections, winning all three seats at stake.
In Jhapa-6, NC’s Dr. Gopal Koirala polled 28,066 votes against second placed Devendra Dahal of the CPN-UML, who got 21,958 votes. In Morang-1, NC’s Aamod Prasad Upadhyaya received 26,501 votes to 12,601 of the UML’s Ram Kumar Rai.
Similarly, in Rautahat-4, Prakash Koirala of the Nepali Congress polled 34,979 and UML’s Ram Kumar Bhattarai could get only 18,639 votes. The UML has said it does not accept the polling verdict of this constituency.
While the polling in Rautahat was marred by violence in some places, those of Morang and Jhapa were relatively peaceful.
In Rautahat polling in one centre was postponed when a mob clashed with police resulting in the death of one person, and some injured.
The results were particularly embarrassing to the CPN-UML, the main opposition party in the parliament. It is more so because the party has been defeated in two of the places, where its two top leaders, Madhav Kumar Nepal and K.P. Oli, had won by comfortable margins in the last general elections.
Initially it was thought that the Nepali Congress will have an easy time only in Morang-1, from where NC president Girija Prasad Koirala had won earlier. The Congress’s win in the other two constituencies has been called a pleasant surprise by even Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai.
Looking at the by-elections, one could easily guess that there are several determinants to the results.
The first is the majority government of the Nepali Congress, and the voters in those areas may have thought that a ruling party candidate could be a better bet for the development of their constituency.
The second is the choice of candidates. In all the constituencies, observers felt NC candidates were better known.
The Congress candidate in Jhapa is an intellectual and is better known than the UML candidate.
In Morang, Koirala’s influence and the choice of another Koirala clan as the party’s candidate had become an almost certain winner even before the election.
However, in Rautahat, the party’s choice of an outsider still won the bet. Mainly because the legacy of late B.P. Koirala also worked on his son Prakash. Additionally, many believe it was supplemented by his daughter, Manisha Koirala. The Bollywood based heroine was able to create a big wave on ‘her’ side. The influence of showbiz and cinema still works here like in most other countries. But the UML blames the heavy handedness of Congress Minister Khum Bahadur Khadka for its loss. Khadka had virtually stationed himself in the constituency throughout the election.
However, the UML betted on relatively weak candidates, and more importantly it could not assure the voters what it would give to them if its candidates won in the by-elections. Being in the opposition has its disadvantages.
Meanwhile, there is little reason for the Nepali Congress to be overly euphoric with the wins. For, the wins have not come because of the government’s or the party’s good work. At the most, this is only the reflection of the people’s hope that the party in power will do something worthwhile for them.