Kathmandu, March 5 Nepalese citizens began arriving at polling booths in all 165 constituencies on Thursday morning, under tight security, to cast their votes in the crucial general election, the first since a violent protest by the Gen Z group that ousted the K P Sharma Oli-led government last year.
More than 18.9 million eligible Nepalese will be exercising their franchise to elect the 275-member House of Representatives from among the 3,406 candidates vying for 165 seats through direct voting, and 3,135 candidates vying for 110 seats through proportional representation.
Voting began at 7 am and will conclude at 5 pm. The counting will begin immediately after the ballot boxes are collected.
"Voting began in all constituencies, including the southern plains, hilly areas, and the mountainous region, at 7 am," said Election Commission spokesperson Narayan Prasad Bhattarai.
"The election has taken place in a peaceful environment across the country," he added.
Addressing a press conference here on the eve of the polls, Acting Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari had said on Wednesday that all preparations for the election had been completed and urged voters to actively and enthusiastically participate in the democratic exercise.
In Kathmandu, the weather was pleasant, the sky was clear, and people were enthusiastically queuing up to cast their votes.
The Gen Z youth, through their two-day intensified protests on September 8 and 9, ousted Prime Minister Oli, the chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) -- CPN-UML -- who was heading a coalition government with the support of the Nepali Congress, which enjoyed nearly two-thirds majority support.
After Oli's ouster, President Ramchandra Paudel dissolved the House of Representatives on September 12 and appointed Sushila Karki as the caretaker Prime Minister.
The major issues raised by the Gen Z youth include anti-corruption, good governance, an end to nepotism, generational change in political leadership, etc.
Starting Wednesday, Nepal has declared a three-day holiday for the polls.
There are a total of 10,967 polling booths and 23,112 polling centers, according to the Election Commission data. As many as 65 political parties are participating in the election.
