Nepali Congress Officially Declares Gagan Thapa as PM Candidate

The Nepali Congress has officially announced Gagan Thapa, elected unopposed as party president at the second special general convention, as its candidate for prime minister as the party gears up for the March 5 polls.

The party’s central working committee, which met for the first time at the central office in Sanepa, Lalitpur, on Friday, January 23, following the convention, approved the decision. Vice President Bishwa Prakash Sharma, elected in the same convention, had proposed Thapa’s name for the Prime Ministerial candidacy.

The announcement comes after the Election Commission (EC) granted official recognition to the new central committee on January 16. The Sher Bahadur Deuba faction immediately rejected the decision, claiming it lacked legal and procedural validity.

The Thapa–Bishwa Prakash Sharma faction had held the special general convention from January 11 to 14, claiming support from a majority of delegates from the previous general convention. In response, the Deuba faction filed a writ petition on January 18, challenging the EC’s recognition of the Thapa-led central committee. The faction argued that the second special general convention, which elected Thapa as party president, was unconstitutional and violated internal party statutes. While seeking to overturn the EC’s endorsement, most Deuba-aligned leaders nonetheless filed nominations for the general elections.

On January 20, the Supreme Court declined to issue an interim order on the petition. Instead, a single bench of Justice Sunil Kumar Pokharel issued a show-cause order to the EC and other defendants, noting that the petition raises complex and serious legal and constitutional questions. Citing the urgency of the matter, the Supreme Court directed that the case be taken up on a priority basis, with the final hearing scheduled within 15 days of the respondents submitting their written replies or after the submission deadline.

Earlier, two other political parties have already declared their prime ministerial candidates. The Rastriya Swatantra Party has chosen Balendra (Balen) Shah, former mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City, while the CPN-UML has nominated Chair KP Sharma Oli. Both Shah and Oli are contesting from Jhapa-5, Oli’s home constituency.

Congress President Thapa, meanwhile, has shifted from Kathmandu-4 and filed his candidacy from Sarlahi-4. His contest against RSP’s Amresh Kumar Singh has drawn attention from voters and political observers alike.