All major Nepali and English newspapers published from Kathmandu on Sunday have also given the topmost priority to the ongoing debate over the election of National Assembly and subsequent delay in formation of the new government. Political parties seem adamant on their stances and the debate is unlikely to end anytime soon.
As the Election Commission has almost completed the counting of proportional representation votes, the poll results have also been a prominent issue in the front pages today. Other financial and socio-cultural issues have also been prioritised.
Important
Leaders still divided over National Assembly polls, new government
The Nepali Congress and the leftist alliance have not budged from their stances over the election process for National Assembly, due to which the polls and the formation of new government are likely to be delayed by weeks. Meanwhile, President Bidya Devi Bhandari has said she will not issue the ordinance of National Assembly till major parties forge a political consensus, according to Naya Patrika.
The Kathmandu Post reports that the President has urged major political parties to resolve the disputes at the earliest. Meanwhile, another report in the same paper says Prime Minister and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba has called on the leftist alliance not to prove the head of the state and drag her to controversy. Deuba is of the view that UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli has tried to provoke the President not to pass the ordinance, according to the report.
The Nepali Congress has been stressing that the single transferable system be used for the polls whereas the alliance of CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Centre are of first-past-the-post polls. Meanwhile, Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal is thinking of taking initiatives to find a middle-path solution, according to Rajdhani.
Experts advise PM in his favour
As Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba consulted constitutional experts and lawyers about possible way-out from the current political deadlock, the invitees told him that he was right, reports the government-run Gorkhapatra. The experts, according to the report, said the President could not reject the ordinance sent by the government for her approval and Deuba needed not resign before the formation of National Assembly.
Likewise, the experts said the government’s proposal to elect National Assembly members through the single transferable system was not against sentiments of the constitution as the leftist alliance has been saying.
Those invited to the PM including Purna Man Shakya, Harihar Dahal, Mahadev Yadav, Prem Bahadur Khadka, Sher Bahadur KC and Khamba Bahadur Khati among others.
Locals’ protest in Raxaual mars Nepali industries
Locals of Raxaul, adjacent to Birgunj of Parsa district, have imposed an obstruction on the import of various raw materials citing the movement of heavy vehicles polluted the city, report Karobar and Abhiyan in their lead stories.
While almost all industries of the Birgunj-Pathalaiya corridor have been affected by the strike, factories of other places of the country are also suffering the shortage of raw materials, Karobar says. The locals had launched a similar strike one year ago too.
Meanwhile, the protesters have said they will impose a complete ban on the transportation from December 25, according to Abhiyan.
Ignored
‘Left alliance responsible for Congress loss’
Leaders of Nepali Congress have said the party lost recent provincial and federal parliamentary elections because of the formation of left alliance comprising two big communist parties, according to The Himalayan Times. Besides, the leaders have identified intra-party conflicts, failure to forge democratic alliance and negative messages disseminated by the government’s controversial decisions were also responsible for the debacle.
The party’s senior leader Shekhar Koirala has been quoted in the report, “The proportional representation figures suggest we have not lost our voters. But, the first-past-the-post results call for serious introspection.”
Local leaders ignore call to submit property details
The Ministry of Federal Affairs and Local Development has asked officials of recently elected local governments to submit their property details so as to comply with the property laws. However, very few have obeyed the decision, reports Nepal Samacharpatra.
Meanwhile, the Ministry has warned of taking action if they fail to submit the details within next four days, the report says, quoting MoFALD spokesperson Rudra Singh Tamang, that each official failing to meet the deadline will be fined Rs 5,000.
Interesting
Garlands worth Rs 25 million used during elections
The Floriculture Association of Nepal (FAN) says flower garlands worth Rs 25 million were used for recent provincial and federal parliamentary elections, reports Karobar in its anchor story for the day. Officials of the organisation say party cadres excessively used flower garlands in their pre-poll campaigning as well as after the announcement of results.
The domestic production could not meet the high demand; hence some traders also imported flowers from India also, according to the report, maintaining exact data of how much flowers were imported are immediately unavailable.
Bir Hospital’s VIP cabin hasn’t hosted any guest in past 26 years
Nepal’s oldest Bir Hospital has a well-facilitated cabin for VIP patients, but no one has been admitted to it for last 26 years, reports Nagarik.
The cabin has eight rooms including kitchen, guest room, waiting room and room of security and medical personnel. It was built to provide services to VIPs like prime ministers, ministers, top political leaders and lawmakers. Though members of the royal family took service from the facility during the Panchayat era, it has not served a single guest since the restoration of democracy in 1990, according to the report.
