Independent candidate Dhan Bahadur Kami has been elected chairman of Ward 8 of Kankasundari Rural Municipality in Jumla district.

Kami and his panel comprising three other candidates from the Dalit community have won the ward election.

He secured 288 votes while his closest rival Kaptan Bahadur Shahi from the Nepali Congress garnered 220 votes.

The ward’s Dalit community had feilded Kami’s panel as independent candidates for the May 13 local level elections. The panel won the post of ward chairman along with two ward members and Dalit female ward member.

Gold Damai and Karnajit Sarki were elected ward members while Chanakhi Kulal was elected as the Dalit female ward member.

Only the post of female ward member was secured by Nepali Congress candidate Ramu Devi Kafle.

The winning candidates had rejected party tickets stating that the situation of Dalits in the community had not improved even after the adoption of federalism and only a leadership under a Dalit representative would bring changes in the ward.

Following their victory, the newly-elected ward representatives had taken out a victory rally from the office of the election official to ward no 8.