KMC Mayor Balen boycotts National Assembly elections

Published On: January 25, 2024 01:45 PM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, Jan 25: Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) Mayor Balendra Shah (Balen) has boycotted the election of National Assembly members.

Mayor Shah boycotted the election of members of the National Assembly that is being held today.

His secretary Bhupadev Shah said that Mayor Shah has decided not to cast his vote in the ongoing National Assembly elections due to his busy schedule.

Secretary Shah said, “Mayor Shah will not be casting his vote in the ongoing National Assembly elections because of his busy schedule and commitments.”

Shah won local elections as the mayor of Kathmandu metropolis in 2022 as an independent candidate.

Voting for the four vacant posts of National Assembly members from Bagmati Province is underway.

Voting is in progress at the designated polling stations and centers in the capitals of the seven provinces for electing 19 members of the National Assembly. The 19 Upper House of the Federal Parliament seats are falling vacant on March 4.

The Election Commission has fixed 9.00 AM to 3.00 PM today for voting. It stated that counting votes would be started immediately after the voting concludes.

Election Commission's deputy spokesperson Shreedhar Panthi said voting is under way in all seven provinces.

According to him, the election results would be announced today itself. The electoral college comprising the Province Assembly members, the chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of rural municipalities, and the mayors and deputy mayors of the urban municipalities will participate in the voting.

A single vote of the Province Assembly member has a weightage of 53 and that of the chair and vice-chair of rural municipalities and mayor and deputy-mayor of urban municipalities carries a weightage of 19. The total vote weightage is 57 thousand 559.

Two thousand and forty-seven voters, including 549 Province Assembly members and 1,498 chair and vice-chair of rural municipalities and mayor and deputy-mayor of urban municipalities will cast their votes in the election.