Kathmandu, October 29 : Newly elected office-bearers and central committee members of the Nepali Congress took the oath of office on Thursday, with party president Gagan Kumar Thapa administering the oath at the party’s central office.
With the oath-taking ceremony, the newly elected central working committee has formally assumed responsibility for running the party.
Thapa had already taken the oath of office and secrecy on Asoj 31, coinciding with Phulpati, a major day of the Dashain festival.
The final results of the elections held during the party’s 15th General Convention were officially announced on Asoj 30. The convention was held in Kathmandu from Asoj 18 to 23.
The convention’s inaugural and closed sessions took place at Khulla Manch, while voting was conducted at Khulla Manch and the National Assembly Hall.
Voting took place on Asoj 23, with the counting of votes for the party president beginning that night at the National Assembly Hall. The presidential election results were announced on the morning of Asoj 24.
Vote counting for other positions began on the night of Asoj 24 at the party’s central office in Sanepa.
According to convention secretary Raju Katuwal, the counting process was completed within a week, compared with 12 days during the party’s 14th General Convention, when votes from 4,700 voters were counted.
This time, nearly 162,000 ballot papers had to be counted. Elections were held for 229 positions across 77 categories, with each voter required to cast votes using 23 ballot papers, Katuwal said.
Thapa was elected party president with 94 percent of the votes. The newly elected leadership includes Bishwaprakash Sharma as senior vice-president; Dr. Chandra Kanta Bhandari and Madhu Acharya as open-category vice-presidents; Pushpa Bhusal as women’s vice-president; and Binod Chaudhary as inclusive vice-president.
Pradeep Paudel, Uday Shumsher Rana and Dr. Dila Sangroula (Pant) were elected general secretaries. The newly elected central committee is expected to lead the party under Thapa’s leadership following the completion of the 15th General Convention.
