Nepal Sets Jan. 20 Nominations as Balen Enters Race to Face Oli in Jhapa-5

Overview

• The Election Commission’s model code of conduct took effect at midnight Sunday to ensure impartial, transparent and frugal polling for the March 5 House of Representatives election.
• Candidate filings under the first‑past‑the‑post system are scheduled for Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., with citizenship, voter ID and party authorization documents required.
• Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari issued a public appeal for broad support, saying legal scrutiny begins immediately after nominations are submitted.
• Former Kathmandu mayor Balendra Shah resigned, joined the Rastriya Swatantra Party as its prime‑ministerial pick and plans to file from Jhapa‑5 to challenge CPN‑UML chair K P Sharma Oli, launching his campaign with a call to decentralise power.
• Two interim ministers—Bablu Gupta and Jagdish Kharel—stepped down to contest on RSP tickets, as the commission also published closed proportional representation lists and opened an objections window through January 24.