Santosh Kunwar elected president of NRNA Australia

Santosh Kunwar has been elected as the new president of NRNA (Non-Resident Nepali Association) Australia. He defeated two other candidates, Bhairav Dhakal and Sanjeev Gorkhali Dhakal, in the election. Kunwar was the former general secretary of the organization.

The election was held online on Saturday across six states and two territories of Australia. Out of about 16,000 registered voters, 13,701 people cast their votes.

According to the election commission head Dilli Dhakal, Kunwar, who is from Queensland, received 6,839 votes. Bhairav Dhakal from Perth got 3,727 votes, and Sanjeev Gorkhali Dhakal from Darwin received 2,125 votes.

Kunwar will now lead the NRNA Australia for the next two years, a role considered important in the international NRNA community.

Other elected members include:

• Vice President: Babin Mishra
• General Secretary: Chunamani Sapkota
• Secretary: Kalyan Khadka
• Treasurer: Nijan Chaulagain

Elected members for the International Coordination Council (ICC) include Bishnu Tiwari, Deepak Adhikari, Deepak Basnet, Harikrishna Adhikari, Nirajan Pokharel, Rajesh KC, Sushil Pokharel, and Saibal Neupane.

Riznu Adhikari from South Australia was elected as the Women’s Coordinator, and Pukar Ghimire was elected as the Youth Coordinator.

State coordinators:

• NSW: Ushakiran Baria Pokharel
• Victoria: Mahadev Dhanuk
• South Australia: Thir Gurung
• Western Australia: Haribansh Sanjel
• Northern Territory: Trilochan Sapkota
• ACT (Capital Territory): Lalit Malla
• Queensland: Atul Khadka (unopposed)
• Tasmania: Sujan Wagle (unopposed)

After winning, Kunwar said he is committed to making NRNA Australia a common platform for all and will work together with everyone for the betterment of the community.