Uprety: Nov polls not possible with ordinances alone
SANTOSH POKHREL
POKHARA, July 28: A day after the government forwarded election related ordinances to the president, Acting Chief Election Commissioner Neel Kantha Uprety on Saturday said the November 22 Constituent Assembly (CA) election was not possible by simply issuing ordinance without political consensus and amendment of the interim constitution.
The statement of acting chief election commissioner came at a time when opposition parties have ruled out the possibility of November 22 polls.
The government on Friday forwarded two election related ordinances to President Ram Baran Yadav for endorsement.
"The president may endorse the ordinances, but it is not possible to hold the polls if the Interim Constitution is not amended," Uprety added. "The EC can move ahead, only if necessary laws are available." He said that the constitutional body needed clear constitutional guidance to hold election.
Talking to the media in Pokhara, Uprety also said the election would be possible only if political parties arrived at a consensus on the issue. "If election are to be held, political parties must forge consensus at the earliest," maintained Uprety.
He said the CA election will not get legitimacy if major political parties do not participate in the polls and it would not have credibility.
"If the election is conducted without the participation of major political parties including Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, it will not be legitimate," said Uprety, adding, "The legitimacy of November 22 elections is getting slimmer each day."
"NC and UML are protesting the election and it´s not our job to forge consensus among political parties," said Uprety, "Ours is a technical job."
Uprety expressed dissatisfaction over government preparation for the election saying it could not clear legal and constitutional hurdles as sought by the EC.
The EC had set a deadline of July 22 to remove legal and constitutional difficulties by amending election related Acts and the interim constitution to hold the election on the stipulated date.
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Uprety: Nov Polls Not Possible With Ordinances Alone
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