Deuba secured 1,822 votes against 1,296 by his rival, Ram Chandra Paudel. Following Deuba's victory, party cadres from different parts of the district have started to gather at district headquarters to participate in the celebrations."For the first time in the history of the Nepali Congress, a person from the far west of the country has made it to that level. Our man has become party president and we feel proud," said Tara Singh Bohora, a local Congress leader.
With Dueba stealing the show, locals are having fun revisiting his childhood and his political journey. According to Rajendra Prasad Bhatta, a Dadeldhura old-timer, Deuba was quite active and mischievous as a child. "He was equally bold and courageous," reminisced Bhatta, who knew Deuba as a child.
Bhatta further said that Deuba used to imitate speeches by political leaders after hearing them over the radio. In school as well in the larger society, he used take a leading role for change.
Deuba completed his primary and lower secondary schooling in Dadeldhura and his secondary level from Sitraram Secondary School in Doti.
Bhatta recalls that Deuba was revolutionary by nature and would not put up with any injustice. His father wanted to send him off to India for higher education, but because of his inclination toward politics, he refused to go.
According to Surendra Bahadur Deuba, another local, Sher Bahadur was fond of making speeches and this trait stood him in good stead over time. "We never thought that someone so familiar to us would some day become such an important person. He has reached the pinnacle several times and it just continues," remarked Surendra Bahadur.
Local Congress leader Lokraj Bhatta, meanwhile, expressed hope that Deuba would bring unity in the Congress party and strengthen it. Similarly, another Congress leader, Govinda Bohora, noted that Deuba is a decisive man with a strong will and would narrow the widening differences in the party. He attributed Deuba's political skills to BP Koirala's guidance, with whom he came into contact during his college days. When Deuba was a youth leader, the late BP Koirala handed over to him party responsibility in the far west.
When the Nepali Congress led the first people's movement in 1990, Deuba was away on a fellowship at the London School of Economics. Two years later, he was sent to the far west as party commander there.
Local politicians describe Deuba as progressive. They also do not hesitate to give him credit for whatever development is to be seen in the far west. "Since he rose in politics, the door to development opened in the far west. Twenty-two bridges across the Karnali River were fixed. Many other development projects can also be attributed to his leadership," said Raghubar Bhatta, a local Congress leader.
Meanwhile, people also remark how lucky Deuba is. His luck has held even when the party did not fare so well in other parts of the country. "Deuba has won elections five times. That's a record," said Dadeldhura president of Nepali Congress, Karna Bahadur Malla.
Deuba has twice been prime minister of the country.
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