Municipal poll has no meaning :former justice

Kathmandu Jan 2-In an interaction programme organized by the Forum for Protection of Human Rights (FOPHUR), former justice of Supreme Court Laxman Prasad Aryal said that observation of municipal poll has no meaning when state has been terrorising people to compel them to cast vote.

He further said the upcoming election would in no way be called 'genuine elections' - defined by the International Covenants of Civil and Political Rights – when it is conducted at the time sovereign rights of people have been snatched away. Aryal also made it a point to claim that the elections would not be free and fair because the EC has been working under pressure from the government.

Political analyst Prof Krishna Pokhrel said that general concept of election is to find solution to conflicts but, in Nepal’s case, the forthcoming elections are going to intensify the conflict.

Senior advocate Bishwa Kant Mainali said there would have been monitoring had the government created situation where major political parties could take part.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the NGO Federation Nepal and a number of other human rights groups have already declared not to observe the municipal elections but they would closely monitor the incidences of human rights violence during the polls.

Main while, elections are going to be held for 618 positions only in 36 municipalities across the country on February 8, officials said.

According to the Election Commission (EC), voting will be held in 34 municipalities for the post of mayor and in 25 municipalities for the post of deputy mayor. Similarly, voting will be conducted to elect 197 ward chairmen, 291 ward members and 71 female members would be elected through polls on the day.

The commission had announced that mayors in 24 municipalities and deputy mayors in 31 municipalities were elected unopposed. Likewise, 389 ward chairmen, 618 ward members and 214 female members were declared elected unopposed.

Nominations were not filed in two posts of two deputy mayors, 220 ward chairmen, 1,508 ward members and 521 female members. 58 mayors, deputy mayors in same number, 806 ward chairmen, 2,418 ward members and 806 female members were to be elected for 50 municipalities in the country.