Major political parties found violating election code: NHRC

Kathmandu: The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has said major political parties are found violating the election code of conduct for the local level elections during the silence period.

In a pre-election monitoring report launched on Thursday, the NHRC shared that the candidacies of women and Dalits are too less and no support system has been ensured for access of the disabled and the incapacitated to the polling booths.

Likewise, women, Dalits, senior citizens and disabled people are missing in the segregated data of the number of voters. The report states that voters have the compulsion of walking for up to eight to ten hours in remote mountainous districts to cast voters in absence of easily accessible polling stations and some political parties used children for their publicity campaigns. The NHRC report said incidents of organising feasts to woo the voters and using cyberspace and public platforms to throw abusive words against another political party were also found in course of the monitoring. More, election publicity content were used going against the code of conduct.

It also pointed out the confusion among the voters regarding the voting process due to the lack of voter education. Moreover, women numbered more in the list of missing voter identity cards with photos. The report also stated that the health safety protocols against COVID-19 were not followed by the political parties while organising the mass assemblies.

Moreover, it said women’s candidacy except in specially designated posts was very nominal in the post of ward chairperson. The report said the election materials were inadequate in several districts. —