A total of 868,443 new electors have registered their names in the voter’s list since March 18, 2021 till 3:00 pm on Thursday to exercise their franchise in the upcoming elections, the Election Commission said.
EC’s Under-Secretary and Information Officer Shurya Prasad Aryal said that 868,443 people had registered their names after the poll commission resumed its voter’s registration programme on March 18, 2021.
Talking to The Rising Nepal, Information Officer Aryal said around 834,775 electors had been added through the District Registration Programme and remaining 33,668 have been registered through the Out-District voter Registration (ODR).
According to Aryal, from March 18 to December 5 last year, 211,820 new voters had registered their names on the electoral roll through the District Election Offices, District Administration Offices and Area Administration Offices.
“Similarly, 663,075 new voters had registered their names on the electoral roll under a month long special voters registration drive run by the Election Commission from December 3, 2021 to January 4, he added. The drive was conducted at 637 local bodies,” said Aryal.
Likewise, the highest number of electors are registered from Province 2 at 227,170, followed by Lumbini Province at 186,084 and Bagmati at 148,331, Province 1 (128,881), the EC informed.
Similarly, 77,503 electors are registered in Gandaki Province, 50,767 in Sudurpaschim Province and 49,707 in Karnali Province.
The election body had halted the voter’s registration programme on Dec 20, 2020 after President Bidya Devi Bhandari announced the mid-term parliamentary election for April 30 and May 10 dissolving House of Representatives (HoR) on the recommendation of the then prime minister KP Sharma Oli.
The commission resumed the programme on March 18 last year following the Supreme Court’s decision to reinstate the dissolved House of Representatives (HoR) on February 23.
“A total of 16,243,110 voters had registered their names on the electoral roll before December 20, 2020,” said Aryal.
After the new update, 17,111,553 people are on the electoral roll, the EC data shows.
During the last election of House of Representatives in 2017, the number was 15,427,938, said Information Officer Aryal.
Aryal said, “Although the special campaign has concluded, the number of people reaching the District Election Office, District Administration Office and Area Administration Office to register their names in electoral roll has been encouraging.” The special drive has brought awareness among the people, he added.
The commission would continue to collect the names and details of the citizens who have reached the age of 16, said Aryal, adding, “As per the law, one can register as a voter after completing 16 years, but can vote only after reaching 18.”
He said, “Citizens who have reached the age of 18 on the date fixed by the commission will be eligible to cast vote in election.”
Spokesperson of the Commission Shaligram Sharma Poudel said although the campaign had concluded, the voter’s registration programme would continue until a day before the announcement of the election date.
According to the existing legal provision, the voter’s name cannot be registered in the electoral roll after the announcement of the election date.
The eligible person can register their names through the District Election Office, District Administration Office and Area Administration Office, he added.
Earlier, the officials of the Election Commission recommended the government to hold local elections on April 27 and May 5.
Source : TRN,
