Kathmandu, December 29
Kathmandu Mayor and Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) leader Balen Shah has proposed social activist Ashika Tamang to run as a proportional representation candidate in the upcoming election.
Political parties are under pressure to submit their closed lists for proportional representation to the Election Commission by Monday. Accordingly, Balen held day-long discussions on Sunday with aspirants for proportional seats and individuals he has proposed.
During this process, he also held talks with Tamang. According to her, she met with Balen’s close team on Sunday evening, where the mayor himself was present.
“I just returned after the discussion. The mayor was there as well. He proposed that I contest as a proportional representation candidate,” Tamang told Onlinekhabar.
Before the meeting with Balen, Tamang had conducted a poll on her social media seeking public opinion. She said that 92 per cent of respondents suggested she should contest a direct election, which is why she expressed her lack of interest in the proportional route.
“I had posted a voting poll, and 92 per cent said it would be better to contest directly,” Tamang said. “The current advice is also to run in a direct election. However, it has not yet been decided from which constituency I will contest.”
