Janardan Sharma’s Unbroken Winning Streak Ends in Rukum West, Gopal Sharma Emerges Victorious

Kathmandu — The long-standing winning streak of leader Janardan Sharma in Rukum West District has come to an end in the parliamentary elections. According to the final results of the House of Representatives election held on Falgun 21 (March), his former party worker Gopal Sharma defeated him to secure victory.

Gopal Sharma, the candidate of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), was elected to the House of Representatives after receiving 21,609 votes. By defeating his former political mentor Janardan Sharma, he has signaled a shift in the district’s political dynamics.

In this election, Janardan Sharma finished in third place. Despite contesting the election with an alliance with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist), he secured only 14,346 votes. Ahead of him was Raju KC of the Nepali Congress, who came second with 16,661 votes.

This time, Janardan Sharma had left the party led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal and contested the election as a candidate of the Progressive Democratic Party. In previous elections, however, he had consistently won in Rukum West while representing the Maoist party led by Dahal.

Sharma had not faced defeat in any election since 2008 (2064 BS). This marks the first time in nearly two decades that he has lost an election in the district.

According to the election office, Rukum West has 106,660 registered voters, of which 62,968 votes were cast. Analysts say the result signals a new shift in the political balance of the district.