Voters wait anxiously for local poll results

By Our Correspondents Jaleshwor/Pyuthan, May 15: Voters across the country are anxiously awaiting the results of the local level election held on May 13.

The public are updating themselves through media, social media, media personnel and election experts to find out whether the candidates they voted for have been elected or not. They have been predicting about the winners in the district. They have been waiting to welcome their elected representatives. 

Although the Election Commission had fixed the time for counting of votes at 7 pm on Friday as soon as the polling was over, the counting of votes could not start on Friday in any municipality except Bardibas of Mahottari. The counting of votes in Bardibas Municipality had started only after 9 pm on Friday. In some municipalities, ballot boxes were delayed in reaching the vote counting stations and in some places, counting could not start on Friday night due to lack of consensus in the all-party meeting.

Apart from Bardibas of Mahottari, counting of votes had started on Saturday morning in Samsi, Gaushala, Manara, Siswa, Sonama, Ramgopalpur, Mahottari and Pipra. According to the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer, Mahottari, the counting of votes in Matihani Municipality, Jaleshwor Municipality, Aurahi Municipality and Balwa Municipality, Bhangha Municipality, Ekdara Municipality and Loharpatti Municipality started on Saturday afternoon.

Farooq Ansari, a local youth of Jaleshwor Municipality-10, said, "This election is a local level election. It is directly related to the development of the locals." According to Election Officer Subodh Kumar Mahato, 70 per cent of the total voters had cast their votes on Friday. There are 336,095 voters in Mahottari.

Similarly, counting of votes is underway in all the nine municipalities of Pyuthan. As soon as the counting of votes started, crowds of voters have gathered at the centres of all the municipalities.

Padam KC said that he had come from Liwang of Ward No. 6 to hear the results at Liwase, the centre of Gaumukhi Rural Municipality. Candidates, leaders, cadres and voters have gathered in Khalanga, the district headquarters, to know if their selected representatives has been elected or not. 

Mahesh Thapa, a local, said that there was a crowd of people listening to the results in Bahane, the centre of Naubahini Rural Municipality. "Crowds have increased near the vote counting centres," he said. "Voters are excited to hear the results." Counting is going on in Machhi of Jhimruk, Jaspur of Mandvi, Bhingri of Swargadwari, Baddanda of Sarumarani and Baraula of Airavati. The pressure of the general public of the municipality has increased in those places now.