Kathmandu, May 20
Former bureaucrat Kishore Thapa, considered one of the frontrunners for Kathmandu’s Mayor, has accepted defeat in the contest.
Thapa, who was backed by Rabindra Mishra’s Sajha Party, said although his win looks far-fetched, he is happy with the number of votes he received in the election. Thapa, who had said he would garner 100,000 votes to win the race, said he did not get enough time to campaign for the election.
“We did not get enough time to campaign. We could not go to every household. We could not even attend programmes organised by local people at the ward level,” he added.
Thapa also said that the Election Commission’s decision to not allow the Sajha Party to contest as a political party was another reason for his below-par performance.
Thapa said his party had a different vision from that of Bibeksheel Nepali and an electoral alliance was not possible. “Bibeksheek is about youth energy while Sajha is about the experience,” he said.
The former urban planner says he will support the new mayor in whatever way he can.
