Chitwan, May 26
Of four metropolitan cities that went to polls on May 14, results have already been out from Lalitpur and Pokhara. The vote count in Kathmandu is soon to conclude and the CPN-UML is most likely to grab the top position.
Therefore, the whole nation is curious to know what happens in the Bharatpur Metropolitan City of Chitwan. Results from the city are still hard to predict as a heavy bulk of votes is yet to be counted.
The main opposition CPN-UML has fielded Devi Gyawali for the mayoral position and he is leading the count with a fluctuating margin against the CPN-Maoist Centre’s candidate Renu Dahal.
Dahal, the daughter of outgoing Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, enjoys the support from Nepali Congress as well. However, analyses show she has not received votes from all Congress cadres.
Gyawali therefore claims that he will surely win the elections.
“I have already won a phase of elections as I am fighting against two major ruling parties,” a confident Gyawali tells Onlinekhabar, “I have not been below them [in the vote count]. I have received love and support from all.”
The candidate says he will win the elections with a difference of 1,500 to 2,000 votes.
Dahal, however, has not lost her hope yet.
“[Out of the wards from which the votes are yet to be counted] I have heard that the UML dominates ward 16,” she says, “But, we will win other wards.”
However, she maintains, “It was expected that the alliance of first and third biggest parties would win with a big margin. But, it seems unlikely.”
“We did not have sufficient time to convince people. We could not justify the relevance of alliance,” she says adding that many cadres of NC and CPN-MC did not vote for each other’s candidates as decided at the central level, “But, we will win with a thin margin.”
