Six Former Finance Ministers to Contest Upcoming Election

Six former finance ministers and one former state minister for finance are contesting the upcoming House of Representatives election.

Nominations for the March 5 election closed on Tuesday for all 165 first-past-the-post seats, with more than 3,400 candidates filing their candidacies nationwide. Among them are four former prime ministers and several senior political figures, reflecting the high political stakes of the election.

Despite holding key portfolios and enjoying strong party backing, none of the former finance ministers currently in the race were able to present budgets for two consecutive fiscal years while in office. Frequent changes in governments and shifting political alliances meant that budget formulation and implementation were often handled by different ministers in successive years.

The former finance ministers contesting the election include Dr Baburam Bhattarai, Bishnu Prasad Paudel, Barshaman Pun, Janardan Sharma, Gyanendra Bahadur Karki, and Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat. Former state minister for finance Udaya Shumsher Rana is also contesting the election.

Former prime minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai has filed his candidacy from Gorkha-2. Barshaman Pun, contesting from Rolpa-1, served as finance minister twice. Five-time finance minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel is contesting from Rupandehi-2.

Likewise, former finance minister Janardan Sharma is contesting from Rukum West while Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat is contesting from Nuwakot-1. Similarly, Gyanendra Bahadur Karki is contesting from Sunsari-4.

An examination of budget history since 2008 shows that only a few finance ministers—such as Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada, Dr Ram Sharan Mahat, and Shankar Prasad Koirala—managed to present consecutive budgets, largely due to relatively longer tenures. -- RSS