Kathmandu, January 20:
Nepal’s upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for March 5, are set to witness a high-stakes political showdown as former Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli and former Kathmandu Metropolitan City Mayor Balen Shah go head-to-head from the Jhapa–5 constituency in eastern Nepal. Both leaders formally registered their candidacies on Tuesday, turning the contest into one of the most closely watched battles of the polls.
Oli, the chairperson of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) [CPN (UML)], is also his party’s prime ministerial candidate. In contrast, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has fielded Balen Shah as its candidate for the top executive post, positioning the election as a direct contest for national leadership.
The rivalry between Oli and Shah has been marked by strong political differences and public exchanges, particularly during their respective tenures in national and local government. Jhapa–5 has traditionally been considered an Oli stronghold, making Shah’s challenge—backed by strong support among younger voters and urban reformists—all the more significant.
Speaking to journalists after filing his nomination, Oli stressed the need for experienced leadership amid growing calls for generational change. “There is confusion among the new generation. To save the country, experienced leadership is essential,” he said, criticising what he described as attempts to destabilise the nation.
Adding to the political intensity in Jhapa district, former Speaker Devraj Ghimire of CPN (UML) and former Deputy Speaker Indira Rana of the RSP are contesting against each other from Jhapa–2.
Elsewhere, newly elected Nepali Congress President Gagan Kumar Thapa is contesting from Sarlahi–4 in Madhesh Province, facing former NC lawmaker Amresh Kumar Singh, now an RSP candidate. Thapa has shifted from his long-held Kathmandu–4 seat to Madhesh this election.
Among other senior leaders, former Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ is contesting from Rukum East–1, while former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal is running from Rautahat–1. Baburam Bhattarai, patron of the Progressive Democratic Party, is contesting from Gorkha–2, and RSP President Rabi Lamichhane has filed his nomination from Chitwan–2.
With prominent leaders clashing across key constituencies, Nepal’s March 5 elections are shaping up to be a decisive test of leadership, experience, and emerging political forces.
