- Type
- Act
- Year
- २०७४ BS
- Status
- In force
- Category
- खण्ड ३: सङ्घीय संसद, राजनीतिक दल तथा निर्वाचन · Volume 3: Federal Parliament, Political Parties and Elections
- Official text
- Official page Official text (PDF)
Analysis drawn from official reports, court rulings and published research, each cited. Figures are being double-checked against the source documents; corrections are welcome.
What does it do?
- Members of each Provincial Assembly are elected under a mixed system: some in single-member constituencies, where the candidate with the most votes wins, and the rest by proportional representation, with the whole province as one constituency and voters choosing a party. The government sets the election date, and the Election Commission runs the election.प्रत्येक प्रदेश सभाका सदस्य मिश्रित प्रणालीबाट चुनिन्छन्: केही एक निर्वाचन क्षेत्र एक पदका आधारमा सबैभन्दा बढी मत पाउने उम्मेदवार (पहिलो हुने निर्वाचित हुने प्रणाली) र बाँकी समानुपातिक प्रणालीबाट, जसमा सम्पूर्ण प्रदेशलाई एउटै निर्वाचन क्षेत्र मानी मतदाताले दललाई मत दिन्छन्। नेपाल सरकारले निर्वाचनको मिति तोक्छ र निर्वाचन आयोगले निर्वाचन सञ्चालन गर्छ। Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal Sections 3–6, pp. 3–4
- Candidates must be at least 25 years old and meet the other qualifications in Section 12; they and their parties pay a deposit, forfeited if a constituency candidate gets less than 10% of the valid votes. Parties standing in the proportional contest submit closed lists in which at least half the candidates are women and which, 'as far as possible' and by population, include Dalit, Adivasi Janajati, Khas Arya, Madhesi, Tharu, Muslim, backward-region and minority candidates; persons with disabilities must also be included.उम्मेदवार कम्तीमा २५ वर्ष पूरा भएको र दफा १२ का अन्य योग्यता पुगेको हुनुपर्छ; उम्मेदवार र दलले धरौटी राख्नुपर्छ, र प्रत्यक्षतर्फ कुल सदर मतको १० प्रतिशतभन्दा कम मत पाउने उम्मेदवारको धरौटी जफत हुन्छ। समानुपातिकतर्फ भाग लिने दलले कम्तीमा आधा उम्मेदवार महिला रहेको र जनसंख्याका आधारमा ‘यथासम्भव’ दलित, आदिवासी जनजाति, खस आर्य, मधेसी, थारु, मुस्लिम, पिछडिएको क्षेत्र र अल्पसंख्यक समुदायको प्रतिनिधित्व हुने बन्दसूची बुझाउनुपर्छ; अपाङ्गता भएका व्यक्तिलाई पनि समावेश गर्नुपर्छ। Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal Section 12, p. 7; Section 28(1)–(6), pp. 15–16; Sections 70–71, pp. 36–37
- Only parties winning at least 1.5% of a province's proportional votes get proportional seats. The Commission tells each party how many women it must elect so that at least one third of its members in the Provincial Assembly are women; the party's central committee then picks the winners from its list, following list order and the inclusion rules 'as far as possible'. The Commission declares them elected and the names are published in the Nepal Gazette.प्रदेशको समानुपातिकतर्फ कुल सदर मतको कम्तीमा १.५ प्रतिशत मत पाउने दलले मात्र सिट पाउँछ। दलका प्रदेश सभाका कुल सदस्यमध्ये कम्तीमा एक तिहाइ महिला पुग्ने गरी कति महिला निर्वाचित गराउनुपर्छ भनेर आयोगले दललाई जानकारी दिन्छ; त्यसपछि दलको केन्द्रीय समितिले बन्दसूचीको क्रम र समावेशी आधार ‘यथासम्भव’ पालना गर्दै निर्वाचित हुने उम्मेदवार छान्छ। आयोगले उनीहरूलाई निर्वाचित घोषणा गर्छ र नाम नेपाल राजपत्रमा प्रकाशित हुन्छ। Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal Section 60(4)–(10), pp. 32–33
- As for the House of Representatives, the Election Commission sets campaign spending limits for candidates and parties, and they must keep accounts and file a statement of their election spending.प्रतिनिधि सभाकै जस्तो, उम्मेदवार र दलले गर्न पाउने प्रचार खर्चको हद निर्वाचन आयोगले तोक्छ, र उनीहरूले हिसाब राखी निर्वाचन खर्चको विवरण बुझाउनुपर्छ। Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal Section 72, pp. 37–38
Gaps, loopholes and improvement ideas
- Unclear The EU Election Observation Mission (2017) found that the proportional quota system for provincial assemblies, like that for the House, includes the Khas Arya among the groups for inclusion, which it said is arguably contrary to international standards on equality. It also noted that parties winning less than 10% of the proportional seats need apply the quotas only 'to the extent possible', leaving their required level of compliance unclear; the detailed provincial quotas were set out in a Commission directive rather than in this Act.युरोपेली संघको निर्वाचन पर्यवेक्षण मिसन (२०१७) का अनुसार प्रतिनिधि सभाको जस्तै प्रदेश सभाको समानुपातिक कोटा प्रणालीमा पनि खस आर्यलाई समावेशी समूहमा राखिएको छ, जुन समानतासम्बन्धी अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय मापदण्डविपरीत हुन सक्छ। समानुपातिकतर्फ १० प्रतिशतभन्दा कम सिट पाउने दलले कोटा ‘यथासम्भव’ मात्र पालना गर्नुपर्ने भएकाले उनीहरूले कति पालना गर्नुपर्ने हो भन्ने अस्पष्ट रहेको पनि मिसनले उल्लेख गरेको थियो; प्रदेशगत विस्तृत कोटा यो ऐनमा नभई आयोगको निर्देशिकामा तोकिएको थियो। European Union Election Observation Mission to Nepal 2017 · Nepal Law Commission, Government of Nepal EU EOM 2017 Final Report, Executive summary, report pp. 4–5 (PDF pp. 5–6); Legal Framework, report p. 13 (PDF p. 14); Candidate Registration, report p. 17 (PDF p. 18); Act s. 28(5), p. 15 and s. 60(6), p. 32
Ideas to fix it
- Review the impact of the quota system on the ethnic composition of the House of Representatives and provincial assemblies, remove the Khas Arya from the groups included, and apply affirmative action only to groups that face negative discrimination.प्रतिनिधि सभा र प्रदेश सभाको जातीय संरचनामा कोटा प्रणालीको प्रभावको पुनरावलोकन गर्ने, समावेशी समूहबाट खस आर्यलाई हटाउने र सकारात्मक विभेदका उपाय नकारात्मक विभेद भोगेका समूहमा मात्र लागू गर्ने। Proposed by: EU Election Observation Mission to Nepal 2017 European Union Election Observation Mission to Nepal 2017
- Replace the separate election Acts, including this one, with a single integrated Election Management Act. The Commission's draft would have parties draw up closed lists by the inclusion shares the government notifies from the most recent census before each election, and include persons with disabilities and gender and sexual minorities on the lists.यो ऐनलगायत छुट्टाछुट्टै निर्वाचन ऐनहरूलाई एकीकृत निर्वाचन व्यवस्थापन ऐनले प्रतिस्थापन गर्ने। आयोगको मस्यौदाअनुसार निर्वाचनअघिको पछिल्लो जनगणनाका आधारमा सरकारले राजपत्रमा तोकेको समावेशी अनुपातअनुसार दलले बन्दसूची तयार गर्नुपर्ने र सूचीमा अपाङ्गता भएका व्यक्ति तथा लैङ्गिक र यौनिक अल्पसंख्यकलाई पनि समावेश गर्नुपर्ने प्रस्ताव छ। Proposed by: Election Commission, Nepal (Annual Report 2081/82) Election Commission, Nepal
Where does it conflict with other laws?
No conflict with another law is documented in the sources we have reviewed so far.