Dr Baburam decides to withdraw candidacy

KATHMANDU: Former Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai has withdrawn his candidacy from the Gorkha-2 seat of the House of Representatives.

“In conversations with friends from both new and established parties, I was told that it would be more appropriate for me to remain a shared figure. If I were to become just a member of parliament or be confined to a particular party, my role could become limited. The country is in a fluid situation that has not yet taken a definite shape. Therefore, rather than entering electoral competition, it would be more appropriate for me to play a role by offering advice and suggestions to political parties and to the government that will be formed,” Dr Bhattarai said in a video message on Friday.

“Considering that it would be more appropriate to support political parties from outside parliament and remain in a guardian role rather than participating in the parliamentary election and becoming merely an MP, I have decided to withdraw my candidacy.”

Before filing his nominations, Bhattarai, who is also the patron of the Progressive Democratic Party, had been maintaining that he would not participate in parliamentary politics. He had conceded his Gorkha-2 seat to then CPN (Maoist Center) Chairperson Pushpa Kamal Dahal in the 2022 elections. His decision to contest the 2026 polls had surprised many.