Vote Counting Delayed in Ilam Constituency 1 Amid Disagreement Over Counting Procedures

The start of vote counting in Ilam Constituency No. 1 has been delayed due to a failure to reach a consensus in the all-party meeting regarding two technical issues. The delay stems from disagreements between the Office of the Chief Election Officer and the political parties.

Speaking with Ratopati, Election Officer Khum Prasad Bhandari informed that some issues remain unresolved in the all-party meeting and that the meeting has currently been adjourned for a lunch break.

According to him, representatives of the political parties have demanded that the counting for both the First-Past-the-Post (FPTP) and Proportional Representation (PR) elections begin simultaneously. However, Election Officer Bhandari stated that due to space constraints and the narrow venue, it is technically impossible to count both simultaneously. Furthermore, according to the clear directive from the Election Commission, ballots that are found to have been cast in the wrong ballot box—FPTP ballots in the PR box or PR ballots in the FPTP box—cannot be counted. However, the parties are insisting that such ballots, which they claim were misplaced during casting, must be included in the count.

According to Election Officer Bhandari, the office is firm on adhering to the Commission's instructions, while the parties remain steadfast in their demands. Bhandari stated, 'It is impossible to say when counting will begin until these two issues are resolved.'