KATHMANDU, Nov 12: In a dramatic political twist, a new party under the leadership of Kulman Ghising has officially been registered with the Election Commission (EC). The Ujjyalo Nepal Party, originally applied for registration by Gyanendra Tamang on August 12, has now been updated and formally announced with Ghising at its helm. Former Energy Secretary Anup Kumar Upadhyaya has been appointed as the party’s chairperson.
According to sources, Sumana Shrestha pulled back from joining the party after former secretary Upadhyaya was chosen as chairperson. Insiders say Sumana had urged Ghising from the very beginning: “You should be the party chairperson. I’ll stand by you if you resign from the government and focus on building the organization.” Until Sunday morning, it was widely expected that Hami Nepal coordinator Sudan Gurung would also join Ghising’s party after several rounds of discussions.
However, Sumana had been firm that Ghising himself should lead. That would have required him to immediately resign from the government—a step he wasn’t ready to take. As a result, both Sumana and Gurung decided to part ways with the Ujjyalo Nepal Party.
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Central member Jitram Lama, however, revealed that an internal agreement has already been reached for Ghising to assume the party’s top leadership after resigning from his current position and to contest the next parliamentary elections. “Once he resigns, Mr. Ghising will become the party’s chairperson. Anup Upadhyaya is only an interim leader. Ghising will also be our prime ministerial candidate,” Lama said.
From the start, Sumana had also been pushing to rename the party, arguing that Ujjyalo Nepal sounded too personalized and centered around an individual. She proposed Janasewa Party instead—a name that had nearly been finalized before Ghising backed out at the last moment. That decision, sources say, was the final straw for Sumana.
The party’s name was officially sealed during a meeting held in Boudha, Kathmandu, on Sunday. According to insiders, the name Ujjyalo Nepal reflects Ghising’s personal choice. Earlier, he had instructed his close aide Gyanendra Tamang to register the name with the EC. Tamang had applied on August 12 but hadn’t completed all the paperwork, which he later submitted on Monday.
Despite the fallout, central member Lama insists the rift is not irreparable. “There’s no major dispute between them,” he said. “There’s a strong possibility they’ll unite in the future.”
Who’s in Kulman’s Party?
The Ujjyalo Nepal Party is chaired by Anup Upadhyaya, with central members including Dr Tara Prasad Joshi, Prof Dr Mahendra Sundar Lawati, Dr Ghanshyam Pandey, Dr Sagar Dhakal, Dr Abhishek Raj Singh, Dr Shankar Dhakal, Tej Narayan Yadav, Reema Bishwakarma, Tashi Lhazom, Dr Raju Thapa, Dr Bishal Bhandari, Shri Gurung, Nilima Basnet, Dipendra Jamkattel, and Sita Devi Pandey, among others — totaling 51 central members.
