KATHMANDU, Jan 27: The Election Commission (EC) has sought explanations from political leaders and candidates of the March 5 House of Representatives (HoR) over their sensitive comments through social media violating the election code of conduct.
Of those sought explanations are Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) senior leader Balendra Shah (Balen), CPN-UML Secretary Mahesh Basnet, Shram Sanskriti Party (SSP) Chair Harka Sampang and independent candidate Kamal Bhusal, popularly known as Nicholas, for alleged violations of the election code of conduct.
Shah is contesting from Jhapa-5, Basnet from Bhaktapur-2, Sampang from Sunsari-1 and Bhusal from Rupandehi-2.
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According to EC, the notices were issued over concerns related to public statements, hate speech, misinformation and other conduct deemed contrary to election laws, democratic norms and the code of conduct.
Multiple complaints were filed against Balen over remarks made on social media, including the use of inflammatory terms such as “killer of 76 children,” “terrorist,” and “one who burned the country,” which complainants said were made without evidence or judicial rulings and undermined democratic debate.
Shah’s remarks also targeted UML leaders, including Basnet, prompting additional complaints.
Separately, Basnet has been accused of making derogatory statements perceived as offensive to the Madhesi community after controversially interpreting Shah’s use of the word “chhaura” during a speech in Janakpur.
The EC has also asked Sampang to clarify allegations that children were used in election campaigning, while Bhusal has been questioned for reportedly campaigning with two different election symbols. “All concerned have been asked to submit their explanations within three days,” an EC source said.
EC has sought explanations with around a dozen candidates in the last few days over similar breech of code of conduct.
