The government has started internal homework after the four parties´ decision, said Bimal Gautam, press advisor to the Chairman of the Interim Election Council Khil Raj Regmi. He, however, said that the government would finalize the election ordinances keeping in view the suggestions of various fringe parties and pressure groups.
Many of the dissenting parties, including CPN-Maoist, Upendra Yadav-led Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum Nepal and Ashok Rai-led Federal Socialist Party, have stood against eligibility threshold for seats under proportional representation electoral system. [break]
Even the four parties -- CPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress, CPN (UML) and United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) -- had been at loggerheads over the issue and had decided on Monday to hand over the responsibility to the government.
Gautam said the government is planning to forward the election-related ordinances to the Office of the President “soon” after taking an appropriate decision. “The government will announce the date for fresh election once election-related ordinances are approved by the president,” he said.
Meanwhile, CPN (UML) Chairman Jhalanath Khanal, who is also the coordinator of High Level Political Committee (HLPC), during his meeting with Regmi on Tuesday, has asked the government to finalize the election law and announce date for fresh Constituent Assembly (CA) election. He also informed the government about the decisions taken by the HLPC meeting held on Monday afternoon. He suggested to the government to finalize the election related ordinance in a “balanced manner” as the parties continue to be at odds over contentious issues such as the eligibility threshold.
Khanal had said that it would be better to announce the date for election at the earliest as the pressure is mounting from various quarters. He argued that the announcement of election date would help dispel the rumor that major parties are trying to defer election indefinitely.
On the occasion, Khanal also apprised Regmi that the major parties had decided to accept the government´s decision on the issue of threshold for seats under proportion representation. “There will be no dispute on threshold. We hope that the government would brings election ordinance in a balanced manner,” he said.
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