The Supreme Court on Sunday asked the government to recognize citizens' right to reject any of the contestants in the elections through negative voting.
A division bench of the Court consisting of Kalayan Shrestha and Prakash Wasti asked the government to make all arrangements to introduce the provision of the negative voting in the electoral law before the next election --local bodies or parliament-- giving a new dimension to the elections being practiced so far.
Responding to a public interest litigation filed by Bikash Lakai Khadka on behalf of the Aparadh Ra Atankabad Biruddha Abhiyan (Campaign against Crimes and Terrorism), the Court asked the government to have a new type of ballot papers with a column for 'no voting' along with the names and symbols of all the contestants.
The petition that was filed months ago demanding that the Court issue a ruling to allow the 'negative voting' beginning the last Constituent Assembly election, disposed the case only today, but instructed the government that this right should be introduced from whichever election taking place from now onward.
Major political parties have pledged to hold elections to the local bodies in the next few months.
Today's ruling by the Court makes Nepal the world's 15th country to recognize the peoples' right to reject contestants if none of them is worthy of representing them in their opinion.
The Indian Supreme Court on September 27 had issued a similar instruction to the government making it mandatory to introduce the 'no voting' right at the earliest, but that was not introduced in the ballot papers when the election to five state assemblies including Delhi took place in November.
It had said that the provision of 'negative voting' will gradually lead to systemic changes as the political parties will have to respect the will of the people in selecting their candidates. India's Chief Justice Sadhasivam-led three member bench had also said that "mechanism of negative voting is necessary and vibrant part of democracy" and directed the Election Commission to introduce a button providing for "None of the Above" the electoral voting machine.
काठमाडौ, पुस २१ – सर्वोच्च अदालतले अबका चुनावमा मत दिन्न भन्ने विकल्प सहितको ब्यवस्था गर्न आदेश दिएको छ ।
न्यायाधीसहरु कल्याण श्रेष्ठ र प्रकाश वस्तीको इजलासले कसैलाई पनि भोट दिन नचाहनेका लागि मतपत्रमा विकल्पको ब्यवस्था गर्न निर्वाचन आयोग लगायत विपक्षीलाई निर्देशनात्मक आदेश दिएको हो ।
गएको सविधानसभाको चुनावमै यस्तो ब्यवस्था गर्न माग गर्दै विकास खड्काले दायर गरेको रिटमा आइतबार फैसला गर्दै सर्वोच्चले अब हुने संसदीय तथा स्थानीय निकायको चुनावमा यस्तो ब्यवस्था गर्न आदेश दिएको सर्वोच्च अदालतका प्रवक्ता श्रीकान्त पौडेलले जानकारी दिनुभयो ।
