Nepal’s main opposition CPN-UML was a little ahead of the ruling Nepali Congress as results of the first phase of the local polls trickled in from three provinces yesterday.
These provinces come under hill region where the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (CPN-UML) was considered stronger.
According to Nepal’s Election Commission, the Nepali Congress is little behind the CPN-UML followed by the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre.
As of yesterday evening, UML has won 48 seats and was leading in 57 while the Nepali Congress had won 42 seats and was leading in 51.
Leading in all four metropolitan cities - Kathmandu, Lalitpur, Pokhara and Bharatpur, the CPN-UML has bagged a majority of seats in cities and villages on a proportional basis while Nepali Congress is winning mostly in rural areas.
In the first phase, polls were held in 283 of the 744 local level units. Nepal is holding second round of local polls including in the Terai on June 31 but Madhes-based parties have been warning they will not participate unless the Constitutional amendment takes place.
There is anger among the public due to delay in vote count and result announcement. Chief election commissioner Ayodhee Prasad Yadav said that it will take another a week to announce the final results.
Five Madhesi activists declared martyrs: Nepal yesterday declared as martyrs five Madhesi activists who were killed in police firing in the country’s Saptari region during a protest against the local body elections.
The United Democratic Madhesi Front activists were killed on March 6 when police opened fire to disperse their supporters who had encircled the venue of a meeting of the main opposition party CPN-UML in Saptari district.
The Madhesi parties were protesting in support of their demand to re-demarcate the provincial boundary through Constitution amendment before conducting the local polls.
Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Bimalendra Nidhi handed over Rs1mn each to the kin of the victims at a function in Rajbiraj of Saptrai yesterday.
Nidhi said the government has formed a three-member committee led by former chief justice of appellate court to probe the firing incident.
The local-level polls are taking place across Nepal after a gap of 20 years. First round of the elections were held on May 14. The second round of polls will be held on June 14.
They should be held in every five years but due to political instability, they were halted since May 1997.
Some Madhes-centric parties have opposed the elections until the constitution is amended to accommodate their views: more representation in parliament and redrawing of provincial boundaries.
The Nepal government has tabled a new constitution amendment bill in the parliament to address the demands of the agitating Madhesi parties ahead of the local elections.
Madhesis, mostly of Indian-origin, launched a prolonged agitation between September 2015 and February last year against the implementation of the new constitution which they felt marginalised the Terai community.
Temporary police personnel recruited for guarding the building are seen, where the votes are being counted, after the local election of municipalities and villages representatives in Kathmandu, yesterday.
