KATHMANDU, June 10: Leaders at the meeting of High Level Political Committee (HLPC) failed to make any headway in resolving inter-party disputes over some thorny provisions on election laws even though CPN-UML leaders floated a flexible proposal on threshold criteria.
At the HLPC meeting on Sunday, UML leaders proposed that on threshold criteria, a party should either win a seat directly from any electoral constituency under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) electoral system or get at least 0.67 percent of total valid votes cast nationwide to be eligible to be awarded with seats under the proportional representative (PR) system.[BREAK]
"We (UML leaders) floated the new proposal at today´s meeting with a view to find a middle way solution but there was no agreement as the Maoist and Madhesi leaders didn´t accept that idea," UML leader Agni Kharel told Republica.
The constituent parties -- UCPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and United Democratic Madhesi Front -- are divided over the proposed threshold criteria, among other provisions, included in the draft ordinance prepared by the Election Commission (EC) to amend the electoral laws.
The EC´s draft has proposed one percent threshold to be eligible for PR seats. But of the HLPC member parties, UCPN (Maoist) and Madhes-based parties have opposed the provision while NC and UML leaders are in favor of it. In the past, NC and UML had been insisting for the one percent criteria, lately they are showing flexibility over the percentage. But they are not for removing the provision altogether.
According to NC Vice-president Ram Chandra Paudel, the Maoist and Madhes-based leaders are for entrusting the government with the responsibility of finalizing the election laws.
"Maoist and Madhesi leaders proposed to entrust the government with the task of finalizing the election-related laws but we opposed it," Paudel told reporters while emerging from the meeting at the Birendra International Convention Center, Baneshwar.
He claimed that the move to forward the task to the government would further encourage HLPC skeptics. "At a time when some have already raised questions over the relevance of the HLPC, the four parties should stand united," said Paudel. "We should try to include even dissident parties in the political committee instead."
The HLPC member parties are also divided over some other proposed provisions such as on barring a candidate with criminal background from running in election, downsizing the 601-member Constituent Assembly to 491 members and making public the aspiring candidates´ property details prior to the filing of candidacy.
The EC, in the draft ordinance, has proposed that a candidate can file his/her candidacy only six years after serving jail term if the person is convicted by a court on criminal charges. UCPN (Maoist), Madhes-based parties are against it while NC and UML are insisting on introducing the provision.
Earlier in the afternoon, UML standing committee decided to firmly stick to its previous decision to support the threshold provision.
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