Nepal, July 2 -- A by-election is scheduled for November 3 in Rupandehi Constituency-3. With the election date announced, major political parties have begun preparations. The ruling CPN-UML has already named Khimlal Bhattarai as its candidate, while the Nepali Congress (NC)-the largest party-and the third-largest CPN (Maoist Center) are still in discussions.

Sagar Dhakal is being widely discussed as a potential candidate from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), the fourth-largest party in parliament. Dhakal had contested the last general election from Dadeldhura as an independent candidate against former Prime Minister and NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba but was defeated. After spending some time abroad, Dhakal returned to Nepal a few mo...