Four husband-and-wife pairs and two sets of close relatives have entered the race for the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5, underscoring the prominence of family-linked candidacies across political parties.

The CPN-UML has fielded two married couples, while one couple each is contesting from the Nepali Communist Party and the Aam Janata Party.

Among the UML candidates, Raghubir Mahaseth and his wife Julie Kumari Mahato filed nominations for first-past-the-post seats in Dhanusha. Mahato is contesting from Dhanusha-3, while Mahaseth is running from Dhanusha-4. Mahaseth is a three-time federal lawmaker and former minister. Mahato was elected to the Constituent Assembly in 2008, lost in 2013, and won parliamentary elections from Dhanusha-3 in 2017 and 2022. She is contesting for the fifth time from the same constituency.

Another UML couple in the race is Sher Bahadur Tamang and Usha Kala Rai from Sindhupalchok. Tamang has filed his candidacy from Sindhupalchok-2. A former law minister, he was elected from Sindhupalchok-3 in 2013 and from constituency 2 in 2017 after constituency restructuring, but lost in the 2022 election. Rai is listed under the proportional representation category, ranked fourth among indigenous nationalities women. Politically active in Khotang, she is a former Koshi Province assembly member and previously served as minister for social development.

From the Nepali Communist Party, Devendra Paudel and his wife, Balawati Sharma, are also in the race. Active in party politics since the insurgency period, Paudel is contesting from Nawalparasi-2 after shifting from Baglung. A former education minister, he is running under the first-past-the-post system, while Sharma is listed first under the Khas Arya women category in the proportional representation list.

Journalist Rishi Dhamala has entered the race from Rautahat-4 under the Aam Janata Party. His wife, Aliza Gautam, is included in the party’s proportional representation list. Gautam, who recently joined the party led by Prabhu Sah, said she chose to remain on the proportional list while backing her husband’s direct candidacy.

Siblings also in election fray

In Dolpa, two brothers are contesting against each other. Dhan Bahadur Budha of the Nepali Communist Party and Karna Bahadur Budha of the Nepali Congress have filed nominations from the same constituency. Dhan Bahadur won from the constituency in 2013, 2017 and 2022. Karna Bahadur is contesting an election for the first time after becoming a joint-general secretary of the Nepali Congress through its special general convention.

Both brothers began their political careers in the same party before taking different paths. Karna Bahadur later joined the Nepali Congress after stints in other parties, while Dhan Bahadur moved across multiple parties before joining the Nepali Communist Party.

Similarly, the two sons of late Rastriya Prajatantra Party leader and former minister Deepak Bohara are contesting from separate constituencies in Rupandehi. Prajwal Bohara has filed his candidacy from Rupandehi-1, while Gaurav Bohara is contesting from Rupandehi-3.

Deepak Bohara had been active in politics in the district since 1981 and was elected in the 2022 election. Following his death, the Rupandehi-3 seat fell vacant. Preparations for a by-election were in the final stage when the Gen Z protests erupted in early September, prompting the government to defer the vote. The government has now decided to hold the elections on March 5.