'Polls will be held in free, fair and independent way'

By A Staff Reporter,Kathmandu, Feb. 8: Minister for Home Affairs Om Prakash Aryal has said that the upcoming election to the House of Representatives will be held across the country on the scheduled date in a free, fair and independent manner.

The Home Minister made the remarks on Saturday while carrying out on-site inspections in Nuwakot and Dhading districts to review preparations for the election scheduled for March 5. During the visit, he inspected the offices of the Chief Election Officers in both districts.

The inspection team included Home Secretary Rajkumar Shrestha, Head of the Security and Coordination Division Ananda Kafle, Chief of the National Investigation Department Tekendra Karki, and members of the Home Minister’s secretariat. 

Speaking on the occasion, Minister Aryal said, “We are fully committed to conducting elections in a clean, fair and fraud-free manner, and you have already experienced, and will continue to experience, this commitment through our conduct and behaviour.” 

He also urged all concerned stakeholders to stay alert against the spread of false and misleading information currently circulating in the run-up to the election and to focus on their respective preparations.

After observing a presentation on election preparedness delivered by Nuwakot Chief Election Officer Komal Prasad Acharya, Minister Aryal directed the concerned authorities to ensure a reliable security arrangement so that the forthcoming election can be conducted in a clean, fair and fear-free environment in the district, according to Kafle, who was part of the inspection team.

During the inspection, Chief Election Officer Acharya briefed the team on the preparations completed so far. The meeting was attended by District Election Officers from both constituencies of the district, as well as senior officials from all security agencies deployed in the district.

Following the inspection visit, Ministry spokesperson Kafle informed that election preparations in Nuwakot and Dhading districts have been progressing effectively so far, citing good coordination between the District Election Officers and Chief Election Officers.

Later in the day, the same team led by Home Minister Aryal travelled from Nuwakot to Dhading, where they held discussions with members of the District Security Committee, the Chief Election Officer and District Election Officers regarding the overall security situation and election preparedness. During the visit, the Home Minister and Home Secretary also inspected election-related logistics and materials that had arrived in the district.