KATHMANDU, March 25: A meeting of the Constitutional Council is scheduled to take place today afternoon to recommend names for the chiefs at four separate commissions.

According to sources, the meeting is summoned to recommend new chief commissioner and commissioners at the Election Commission and chairpersons at the Women Commission, Dalit Commission and Indigenous Commission.  

The council is headed by the Prime Minister while Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chairman of the National Assembly, Minister for Law and Leader of the main opposition party are the members of the council.

The Election Commission is left without the head as Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Ayodhee Prasad Yadav retired on Sunday, completing his six-year term in office. Another commissioner Ila Sharma also retired along with Yadav..

Yadav, a lecturer of Economics, served two terms in his office becoming the longest-serving commissioner at the election body.

With the retirement of Yadav and Sharma a five-member Board of the election body remains incomplete. Currently, only three commissioners—Narendra Dahal, Ishwari Prasad Paudel and Sudheer Kumar Shah-- are left at the commission.

Based on their seniority Narendra Dahal will head the organization as acting chief election commissioner until the government appoints the CEC. “Narendra Dahal is the senior-most commissioner among three of us. So, he [Dahal] will be leading the office as the acting chief election commissioner on the basis of seniority,” said election commissioner Paudel.

Since the constitution has no provision to promote a commissioner as the chief commissioner, the government needs to appoint a chief election commissioner.

 
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