Election materials to be sent along with polling officers; High Court issues interim order asking EC not to mobilize govt employees as Election Officer

Kathmandu / March 22: The Election Commission (EC) has made necessary arrangement for dispatching all the materials required for upcoming local-level election along with deputation of human resource at polling centres.

The EC has prepared a list of 67 election materials required for this election.

EC Spokesperson, Surya Prasad Sharma, said the EC has started collecting two types of election materials—one available within the country and next the materials to be imported from abroad.

The EC further said that different election materials including ballot box, stamp pad, stamp pad ink, paper, stapler, glue stick, candle, blade, forms, and carbon paper are required for election.

A total of 744 offices would be set up under the leadership of 75 chief election officers and 669 election officers for the purpose of election at all local levels.

The EC is preparing to establish offices of election officer within April 16 where 6,846 employees would be deputed. Five employees and three volunteers would be deputed for every polling centre.

Spokesperson Sharma said the bidding has already been solicited from eligible vendors to import different election materials including ballot boxes, paper, inerasable ink and seal from out of the country.

The EC has now stock of around 70,000 ballot boxes. Similarly, an agreement was signed to purchase around 30,000 insufficient ballot boxes out of the ballot boxes required for 21,000 polling centres.

EC issues directives related to election

Meanwhile, the Election Commission (EC) has re-directed the Office of Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) to adjourn international visits for training, workshop, seminar and exposure till the conduction of local level elections stated for coming May 14.

The EC had already issued the same directive to the OPMCM on March 11. Issuing a press release here on Wednesday, the EC instructed the Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development to necessarily manage office of returning officers as it will come into function from third week of April.

The EC instructed the MoFALD to instruct its subordinate agencies to make logistic arrangements related to building, furniture, vehicles and telephone for the set up of election office.

“The EC has directed the Home Ministry to furnish district-wise details of weapons collected to be kept under the control of concerned District Administration Office to EC by March 24”, reads the statement.

High Court issues interim order asking EC not to mobilize govt employees as Election Officer

In another development, the High-Court of Lalitpur has issued an interim notice against the decision of the Election Commission of Nepal (ECN) to deploy the government employees of gazetted second class as an Election Officer in the upcoming local body election on May 14.

The single bench of Justice Bal Bhadra Bastola issued the order on the same to the ECN on Wednesday, according to the Court’s Spokesperson Narayan Panthi.

The notice has been issued in line with the existing legal provisions which states that the ECN could deploy only civil servants in judicial sector as the Election Officers, not the civil servants from other government agencies and bodies.

The Court has summoned the ECN to the Court on Thursday in connection to the same.

Earlier on Tuesday, Birendra Basnet had filed a writ petition at the High Court in Lalitpur to put a ban on the implementation of the ECN’s decision to mobilize gazetted second class officers through certiorari. RSS