INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, MAY 13Local polls witnessed a slightly lower voter turnout than what the Election Commission was expecting
as 753 local levels went to the polls today in a largely peaceful manner with a few incidents of violence across the country.
Voter turnout 35% until noon: Election Commission
polls today
Chief Election Commissioner Dinesh
Kumar Thapaliya said at a press conference here that around 64 per cent voters cast their votes in today's civic polls.
The
Election Commission had hoped that 65 to 72 per cent voters would exercise their right
Voter turnout was even lower in Kathmandu Metropolitan City, where only 52 per cent votes were cast.Thapaliya said repolling was ordered in
44 polling centres across 17 local levels in 14 districts
In some polling centres, polling officers used their discretion to postpone elections keeping in mind the possibility of a low turnout due
to rain.Counting of votes in the local levels where polls were postponed will start only after repolling.Polling Officer Surendra Raman
Puri, who was deployed at Krishi Samagri Company Limited, Teku, said some voters had to be turned away, as they had come to the wrong
polling centre.Polling Officer Rishi Ram Baral, who was deployed at Padma Kanya Campus polling centre, said he was expecting long queues of
voters early in the morning, but voters started coming to polling centres in large numbers only after 10:00am.Polling Officer Durga Panthi
of Kirtipur polling centre said some elderly voters were confused and had to be guided about the voting process.Another polling officer,
Binod Kumar Panta, said some voters complained of ballot papers being too long.Radha Shahi Khadgi, who voted at Padma Kanya Campus polling
centre, said she did not vote for the party she had voted for during the last polls.She said she decided to vote for particular candidates
after seeing their previous records and after evaluating their sincerity in keeping poll promises.Bimala Maharjan, who cast her vote at
Kirtipur polling centre, said she voted for those candidates who she thought could help develop her community."I did not vote along party
lines.I voted for candidates who could contribute to the development of the community and the country," she said.She added that in the
earlier elections, she had voted for candidates on party lines but they did not honestly fulfil their promises.A version of this article
appears in the print on May 14, 2022, of The Himalayan Times.
This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com