Kathmandu: Ramsahaya Prasad Yadav, a senior leader from the Madhes region, was elected as Nepal's Vice President on Friday, in a further boost to the coalition government headed by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'.
Ramsahaya Prasad Yadav, a candidate from the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP), comfortably defeated his nearest rival Ashta Laxmi Shakya of CPN-UML to become the Himalayan nation's third Vice President and the first from the Madhes region, bordering India.
Yadav, 52, secured 30,328 votes against 16,328 secured by Shakya, according to the Election Commission.
Yadav had the support of the Nepali Congress, CPN-Maoist Centre, CPN-Unified Socialist, and other fringe parties. Rastriya Prajatantra Party did not take part during the vice presidential voting held on Friday.
Likewise, Mamata Jha from Janamat Party has secured 2,537 votes. Parmila Yadav, from the JSP Nepal itself, though she announced her withdrawal in the middle-way, got 48 votes.
There are 333 federal parliament members and 550 provincial assembly members, who were eligible voters during the vice-presidential election. The weightage of the vote of a federal MP is 79 and that of the province assembly member is 48.
The outcome of the election comes as a relief for the government headed by Prime Minister "Prachanda" as the CPN-UML led by former prime minister K P Sharma Oli withdrew its support to his government following a rift over backing Poudel for the presidential poll.
Ram Chandra Poudel of the Nepali Congress was elected as the new president of Nepal on March 9.
Like the President, the Vice President is elected by an electoral college comprising the members of the Federal Parliament (House of Representatives and the National Assembly) and the Provincial Assembly.
Friday's Vice-Presidential election was the third since the country adopted the federal democratic republic system in 2008.
The tenure of the Vice-President is five years.
Yadav, a Madhesi leader, will replace incumbent Nanda Bahadur Pun after he completes his tenure.
The Madhesi community in Nepal's southern Terai region is mostly of Indian origin.
Vice President Yadav is a permanent resident of Simraungadh Municipality of Bara district in southern Nepal.
He has been active in the Madhes movement for the rights and representation of the Madhesi people.
Yadav started his political journey in 1990 with Nepal Sadbhawana Party.
He was the founding general secretary of the Madhesi Jana Adhikar Forum and had an active role in the first Madhesh Movement (2007).
Yadav was elected to the House of Representatives from Bara-2 in the November polls held last year.