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Printing of ballot papers for the Proportional Representation (PR) system under the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5 has been completed. 

Managing Director at the Janak Education Materials Center, Yadunath Paudel said that the task of printing a total 20, 850, 000 ballot papers for proportional representation has been completed today. 

He also informed that the Center will start printing ballot papers for the first-past-the-post electoral system from today itself.

Officiating Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Ram Prasad Bhandari has urged the media to disseminate election-related news and information based on official sources in view of the upcoming House of Representatives elections.

Addressing an orientation on the “Code of Conduct for the Election to the House of Representatives-2082 BS” organized by Public Service Broadcasting Nepal (PSB) here today, he advised media houses to refrain from disseminating false or misleading content during the election period.

He said citizens need fact-based and credible information during elections, and the media bears the responsibility of fulfilling this need. 

Bhandari also stressed the need for a strict implementation of the election code of conduct by the media houses as well.

Expressing concern over the spread of AI-assisted and manipulated content on digital platforms that could harm individuals’ reputations, Bhandari said the Election Commission (EC) was signing agreements with social media platforms such as Meta and TikTok to manage such issues.

EC Secretary Krishna Bahadur Raut said it is the responsibility of the media to encourage the implementation of the election code of conduct. He particularly urged State-run media to play a more responsible role in disseminating official and credible news to the public.

Likewise, Secretary at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Laxmi Kumari Basnet, wanted the media to demonstrate their effective role in providing credible information to the citizens to help ensure a successful election.

PSB Chair Dr Mahendra Bista said journalists should adhere to both the election code of conduct, and the journalistic code of conduct during the elections. “Self-censorship is needed in this regard,” he said, calling for the practice of independent journalism.

Twelve former ministers are in the race for the elections to the House of Representatives scheduled for March 5 in Sudurpaschim Province.

Major political parties have fielded the former ministers as the candidates in the province which have 16 constituencies. 

Twelve candidates of the Nepali Congress (NC), CPN-UML and Nepali Communist Party (NCP), who already served as ministers in federal and provincial governments, are contesting the elections.

NC picked Narayan Prasad Saud as the candidate in Kanchanpur constituency-2. Saud was the federal minister for multiple times. Except Saud, all candidates from the NC in Sudurpaschim are new, said NC Sudurpaschim Province Joint General-Secretary, Chinta Mani Bhatta.  

Similarly, former Deputy Prime Minister and leader of the NCP, Bhim Bahadur Rawal, is in the race from Achham constituency-1. 

Similarly, former federal ministers Prem Ale and Bina Magar are the candidates from the same party in Kailali constituency-5 and Kanchanpur constituency-1 respectively. 

Trilochan Bhatta, also the former Chief Minister of Sudurpaschim Province government, filed his candidacy from Doti, while former minister Prakash Bahadur Shah from Bajura and former minister in province Man Bahadur Rai from Kanchanpur constituency-3. 

Likewise, UML candidate from Darchula, Ganesh Singh Thagunna from Baitadi, Damodar Bhandari, are also the former federal ministers.   

Former Minister and UML's Deputy General Secretary Lekh Raj Bhatta, former federal minister Gauri Shankar Chaudhary are competing from Kailali constituency-4 and Kailali constituency-3 respectively.

Jhapat Bahadur Bohara, who has filed his candidacy from Achham constituency-1, is former minister in Sudurpaschim Province.

It is estimated that there would be a tough competition among the candidates of the NC, UML, NCP and Rastriya Swatantra Party in Sudurpaschim Province. 

The Province has a total 1.71 million voters and 206 candidates for 16 constituencies, according to the Province Election Office, Dhangadhi.

Mahottari has fielded seven former ministers in the elections to the House of Representatives scheduled for March 5. 

Girajraj Mani Pokhrel, former Minister for Health and Population, is contesting from Mahottari-1 on behalf of the Nepali Communist Party.  He faces competition with former lawmaker of CPN-UML, Laxmi Mahato, and Nepali Congress' candidate Mukesh Kafle in the constituency.

From Mahottari-2, the Janata Samajbadi Party has picked former Minister for Labour, Employment, and Transport Sharad Singh Bhandari as its official candidate. 

He is competing against Nepali Congress' former lawmaker Kiran Yadav and UML’s Kasim Nadaf.

Mahottari-3 has two former ministers in the fray: former Agriculture Minister Hari Narayan Yadav, and former Minister of State for Home Affairs Mohammad Rizwan. Yadav has registered his independent candidacy after the Janata Samajbadi Party declined to grant him the party ticket, while Rizwan is contesting on behalf of the Federal Socialist Party Nepal. 

Other candidates in the constituency include independent Ramadhar Kapar, Nepali Congress’ Bajrang Nepal, JSP Nepal’s Minakshi Thakur, Rastriya Swatantra Party’s Ujjwal Kumar Jha, and UML’s Manoj Kumar Singh.

In Mahottari-4, former Agriculture Minister Mahendra Kumar Raya, former Minister of State for Health Dr Surendra Yadav, and former Province Home Minister Bharat Prasad Shah are in the electoral race. 

Raya is representing the Nepali Congress, Dr Yadav is from JSP Nepal, and Shah is contesting from the NCP, alongside UML candidate Nilam Adhikari, drawing attention to the constituency, as the election approaches.