Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: Major political parties have said that they would participate in the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5.
At a meeting convened by Prime Minister Sushila Karki at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar on Saturday, top leaders of the three major parties – Nepali Congress (NC), CPN-UML and Nepali Communist Party (NCP) – expressed commitment to participate in the polls.
After the meeting, NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba said all political parties are ready to go to the election. “The NC, the UML, and other parties are also prepared. The government must ensure a secure environment for the polls,” Deuba said.
According to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli and NCP Coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal also expressed commitment to participate in the polls.
Speaking at the meeting, Prime Minister Karki urged the leaders to work toward making the election a success.
This is the second meeting between Prime Minister Karki and top leaders of the the largest parties represented in the dissolved House of Representatives.
Earlier, the Prime Minister and the three leaders attended the meeting called by President Ram Chandra Paudel last week.
Although the Election Commission said on Friday that necessary preparations were underway for the elections, major political parties have been showing reluctance to participate in the polls citing a lack of conducive environment in the country. CPN-UML has been pushing for parliament reinstatement. While the NC hasn’t taken a formal decision regarding parliament reinstatement, some of its former lawmakers have filed writ petitions at the Supreme Court demanding House reinstatement.
