Senior advocate Bijaya Prasad Mishra has been elected president of the Nepal Bar Association, the umbrella organisation of legal practitioners. Mishra secured 5,052 votes, while his contender, senior advocate Raman Kumar Shrestha, received 2,621 votes.

The Mishra-led panel was backed by lawyers close to ruling parties Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML, while the Shrestha panel was supported by lawyers close to the opposition parties, including the CPN (Maoist Centre), the Rastriya Swatantra Party and the CPN (Unified Socialist).

In brief remarks after the election, Mishra said he would implement the agendas he presented during the election. “There’s a lot of work to be done at the Nepal Bar Association. Our team is committed to proving ourselves through action, not just words,” he said.

Senior advocate Kedar Prasad Koirala, the candidate from the Mishra-led panel, has been elected general secretary with 4,874 votes. His closest contender Yagyamani Neupane secured 2,367 votes.

Padam Prasad Limbu has been elected vice-president from Koshi Province, Ajay Shankar Jha from Madhesh, Tej Bahadur Rawal from Bagmati, Bhupendra Khanal from Gandaki, Krishna Prasad Pokharel from Lumbini, Bibash Kumar Basnet from Karnali, and Siddharaj Ojha from Sudurpaschim. Saraswati Shrestha has been elected vice-president from the woman category.

According to the election committee, Jagat Bahadur Karki has been elected treasurer.

The voting for the association’s 27th central committee was held on Saturday, with around 80 percent turnout from 9,957 eligible voters. Polling was conducted across 36 centres in Kathmandu and other parts of the country.