New voting law sought

Chief Election Commissioner Dinesh Kumar Thapaliya has said a law should be made that allows voters to cast their ballot from where they live.

Speaking at a programme held in Kathmandu today, Chief Election Commissioner Thapaliya said a law should be in place that allows all voters to cast vote from the place where they are living.

Mentioning that employees and prisoners were allowed to vote proportionally this time, Thapaliya said this opportunity should be given to ordinary voters too in the future. He said voters whose names were published in the final voter list should be able to vote under the proportional election system even from their temporary residence.

"If such law can be formulated, the number of voters will increase," he said.

He further said, "Voters should be able to vote under the proportional election system even from the place of their temporary residence.

We gave this opportunity to employees this time. We even provided the opportunity to prisoners. Are you weaker than prisoners? Opportunity should be given to you too. If we do this, the vote will increase.

I think more than 10 lakh people could not vote this time. That's why, we could not just say it was not in the law, but it may be about the voters living abroad."

Thapaliya said the Commission would include only political parties approved by the people in all party meetings.

"If all party meetings are to be held in the district, they will have to submit the details of the district committee of the party in that district," he said.

He has given instructions to call only parties represented in the HoR, PA, and the local level.