- Thursday, 18 December 2025
Kathmandu: As many as 1100 delegates have cast their votes in the voting during the 11th National Congress of the CPN (UML) for electing a new leadership.
In the voting underway at the National Congress site, Bhrikutimandap, some 1100 have already put their votes as of 7.00 pm Wednesday, shared UML central election commission vice-chairperson Sanuraj Pokharel.
Voting had started at 9.12 this morning. He further informed that the voters took nine minute to two hours five minutes while casting votes.
According to him, a voter in an average takes 25 to 30 minutes for voting. Arrangement has been made to allow the delegates who enter the voting center by 8.00 pm to cast vote, he said.
The groups of sitting Chairperson KP Sharma Oli and senior Vice Chairperson Iswor Pokharel are in the leadership race in the party.
A total of 642 candidates had registered their candidacy for the 301 central members. Eight e-voting machines have been used in the election.
Results of voting will be published two hours after the voting, informed Commission’s Vice Chair Pokharel. As many as 2,263 delegates are participating in the UML National Congress.
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23- National Assembly Election: Polling centers determined
Kathmandu,: The Election Commission has designated polling station and polling centers for the upcoming National Assembly member election to be held on January 25.
The Commission has designated polling stations for all seven provinces today, Joint Secretary and Spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai said. Polling stations have been determined in the districts that are the capitals of the seven provinces, and arrangements have been made for two polling stations each at the designated polling centres.
Voting takes place by an electoral college consisting of provincial assembly members, rural municipality chairpersons and vice-chairpersons, and municipal mayors and deputy mayors. Polling station ‘A’ has been designated for provincial assembly members and polling station ‘B’ has been designated for rural municipality chairpersons and vice-chairpersons, and municipal mayors and deputy mayors.
Accordingly, the provincial polling stations have been designated at the Provincial Election Office premises of Koshi Province in Biratnagar; the Mahendra Narayan Nidhi Mithila Cultural Center of Madhesh Province in Janakpur, Dhanusha; the Bhutan Devi Secondary School of Bagmati Province, Hetauda, Makawanpur; the Provincial Election Office premises of Gandaki Province, Pokhara, Kaski. Similarly, the commission has designated the Lumbini Province Employee Meeting Center, Ghorahi, Dang; the Provincial Election Office premises of Karnali Province, in Birendranagar, Surkhet; and the Provincial Election Office premises of Sudurpaschim Province in Dhangadhi, Kailali as the polling stations to vote for choosing members to the vacant post of Upper House members.
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24 – Tuskers Khagendra Prasad and Rudrakali flown to Qatar
Lumbini,: Two tuskers which the Nepal government gifted to Qatar government were flown to Qatar today.
The elephants namely Khagendra Prasad and Rudrakali were sent to Qatar via a cargo chartered flight of the Qatar Airways on Wednesday. The elephants were taken to Bhairahawa from Sauraha, Chitwan via road on Monday before the departure to Qatar.
The gifted elephants were sent to Qatar from the Bhairahawa-based Gautam Buddha International Airport via Boeing 777 F Freighter Cargo aircraft under the Flight Number QR 8824 of the Qatar Airways at 5.00 pm this afternoon.
Earlier, the Nepal government had decided to gift a couple of elephants to Qatar during the Nepal visit by Qatar’s King Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani on 23-24 April 2024.
Rudrakali and Khagendra Prasad who were reared in the Sauraha-based Elephant Reproduction and Training Centre were chosen for gift to Qatar.
Female Rudrakali is seven years old while the male Khagenra Prasad is of five years.
The tuskers were handed to the Qatar government as the gift at Bhairahawa Airport. Secretary at the Ministry of Forest, Rajendra Prasad Mishra handed over the elephants to the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Qatar Embassy, Khalifa Almari.
On the occasion, Secretary Mishra expressed the confidence that the handover of elephants as gift would further deepen the Nepal-Qatar diplomatic relations.
Deputy Chief of Mission of the Embassy, Almari extended happiness and gratefulness to Nepal for the gift.
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25 – Office-bearers of inquiry commission meet PM Karki
Kathmandu,: Office-bearers of the high-level judicial inquiry commission met with Prime Minister Sushila Karki today.
During the meeting held at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers at Singha Durbar, the office-bearers urged the Prime Minister to extend the term of the commission by one month, according to the PM’s Secretariat.
Commission Chair Gauri Bahadur Karki said leaders of political parties would be summoned for statement next week.
As per the decision of cabinet meeting held on September 21, the commission was formed to probe into the incidents that occurred during the Gen-Z movement on September 8 and 9, 2025.
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26- International art camp kicks off
Kathmandu,: An international art camp and exhibition has begun in Basantapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu with the participation of artists from four countries.
Organized by the National Artists Association of India and in collaboration with Nepali artists, the exhibition features 13 artists from India, 14 from Nepal, two from Bangladesh and nine from Sri Lanka.
The coordinator of the programme and the President of the National Artists Association of India, Biswajit Dam, expressed his happiness for visiting Nepal for the first time to hold an art exhibition. He said, “Basantpur seems to be a very unique and excellent tourist place, the art of its heritage has attracted me.
He further believed that the programme would help strengthen brotherhood by exchanging the skills.
In today’s camp, senior artist and President of the International Watercolor Society Nepal, NB Gurung, made a ‘live demonstration’ of his art.
Earlier, the exhibition was inaugurated amidst a function held at Nepal Fine Arts Academy on Tuesday.
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27 – Land scam case filed against then secretary Karki and three others
Kathmandu,: A land scam case has been registered at the District Court today naming then Secretary of Nepal government Arjun Bahadur Karki, joint Secretary Lekh Bahadur Karki, Chairperson of Thamserku Trekking Lhakpa Sonam Sherpa and Thamserku as defendants.
The District Attorney Office Kathmandu filed the case against the three and a company at the District Court on the scam related to Nepal trust-owned land.
The graft case has been registered demanding a sum of around Rs 5.256 billion over the irregularities in the rent of the Nepal Trust owned one ropani and 14 aana land in Durbarmarga.
In the case, the Attorney Office has sought imprisonment of five years against the defendants.
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28- Gen-Z Movement: Payment of more than five billion claims for material and other damages
Kathmandu,: The insurance claim amount of Rs 5 billion and 180 million has been paid to the insured so far out of the insurance claim amount of material and other damages incurred during the Gen-Z movement.
In a press release issued today, the Nepal Insurance Authority said that out of a total of 3,303 insurance claims in Non-life Insurance Company, about Rs 23.45 billion has been paid so far.The authority said that about Rs 3.82 billion has been paid for property insurance and about Rs 1.22 billion has been paid for motor insurance.
The claim amount has been paid including an advance payment of about Rs 75 million for engineering and contract risk insurance, about Rs 155 million for transport insurance and about Rs 550 million for other insurance.
Similarly, the Nepal Reinsurance Company has paid reinsurance claims, including an advance payment of about Rs3.2 billion to Non-life Insurance Company, for the payment of insurance claims for material and other damages incurred during the Gen-Z movement.Nepal Reinsurance Company has a total of 2,862 reinsurance claims from 14 different non-life insurance companies with a periodic figure of about Rs16.62 billion.
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29- APF Club enters finals of SAFF Women’s Club Championship
Kathmandu,: The Armed Police Force or APF Club of Nepal has entered the finals of SAFF Women’s Club Championship.
In the final round robin league match held at Tripureshwor-based Dasharath Stadium on Wednesday, APF Club secured its place in finals after becoming the group runner-up, playing a goal-less draw with East Bengal Club of India.
With the goal-less draw, East Bengal has also entered the finals of the championship by becoming the group winner.
The finals of the championship will be held at the same venue on December 20.
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