Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Nine members of the Council of Ministers have filed nominations for positions on the Central Committee of the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP).
The 1st General Convention of the party, which is underway in Bharatpur of Chitwan, will elect the party’s new Central Committee for a four-year term.
According to the preliminary list of candidates published by the party’s Central Election Commission, Minister for Finance Swarnim Wagle has filed his candidacy under the Gandaki Province (Open) category.
Similarly, Minister for Foreign Affairs Shishir Khanal is contesting the election in the Open category, while Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Biraj Bhakta Shrestha has filed nominations from the Bagmati Province (Open) category. Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Sobita Gautam is also contesting from Bagmati Province.
Minister for Women, Children, Gender and Sexual Minorities, and Social Security Sita Badi has filed her candidacy under the Karnali (Geographical). Minister for Health and Food Safety Nisha Mehta is contesting from the Koshi (Geographical), while Minister for Education and Sports Sashmit Pokharel has filed candidacy from the Open category. Minister for Agriculture, Forests and Environment Gita Chaudhary is contesting from the Sudurpaschim (Open) category.
Likewise, Minister for Youth, Labor and Employment Ramji Yadav has filed his candidacy under the Madhesi (Open) group.
A total of 384 candidates have filed nominations across different clusters for 99 Central Committee seats. The voting will begin on Wednesday night.
