Nepal voting ends peacefully for new Constituent Assembly
Travel BizNews——————-
Kathmandu, Nov. 19: The much awaited election to the new Constituent Assembly in Nepal concluded peacefully today with turnout of more than 70 per cent . Nepal Election commission said turnout was 70 per cent and voting largely peaceful.
A total of 1, 21, 47,865 people were eligible to vote in the Constituent Assembly elections.
CPN – Maoist led 33-party alliance tried to obstruct the election but heavy mobilization of security forces ensured the voting rights of the people. Nepal Communist Party – Maoist, a breakaway Maoist faction led by Mohan Vaidya , called a nine-day nationwide transport strike to disrupt the polls.
A bomb exploded in Bhote Bahal neighbourhood in Kathmandu today injuring three people including a child.There were isolated incidents of violence in some parts of the country.
More than 16,000 people are candidates in Nepal’s 601-seat Constituent Assembly elections. More than 120 parties are contesting the elections, including three major parties- UNCP Maoists, the Nepali Congress and the Unified Marxist-Leninist.
Around 22,000 observers monitored the polls today in different parts of the country including 235 international observers.
The new Constituent Assembly (CA) is expected to write a new constitution within one year to bring an end to a period of political instability in the country. The last Constituent Assembly elected in 2008 failed to deliver the new constitution and it collapsed in May 2012.
Nepal will choose a 601-member Assembly to draft a new Constitution, including 240 elected under a direct voting system. There will be proportionate voting for 335 seats and the remaining 26 members will be nominated by the government.
The government mobilised 210,000 security personnel and 125,858 government staff to ensure security for the crucial polls.
The voting count will begin from Wednesday across the country and it will take at least 10 days for final result of the election.
