Himal Press 
KATHMANDU: The Election Commission (EC) has proposed a new legal provision requiring political parties to field candidates in at least 70% of the first past the post (FPTP) seats and secure at least 3% of the proportional representation (PR) votes in the House of Representatives (HoR) elections to qualify for national party status.
These proposals are part of a draft bill aimed at amending the Political Parties Act, 2017.
The EC has expanded the criteria for national party recognition. According to the draft, parties must meet the following conditions: secure at least 3% of the PR votes in the HoR elections, field candidates in at least 70% of the direct election seats in the HoR, and win at least one seat in three provinces.
The draft also requires national parties to have an inclusive central committee, provincial committees in all provinces, district committees in every district, and local committees in at least 80% of the local units.
Under the existing provision, parties only need to secure 3% of the PR votes and one FPTP seat to qualify for national party status.
The draft also introduces provisions for recognizing provincial-level parties. A party must secure at least 3% of the proportionate representation votes in the Provincial Assembly elections, field candidates in at least 70% of the FPTP seats in the Provincial Assembly and win at least one seat in the Provincial Assembly to secure province-level party status. Additionally, provincial-level parties must have a provincial committee, district committees in every district, and local committees in at least 80% of the local units within the province.
The EC has also proposed amendments to prevent parties from contesting elections under a single election symbol. The existing law allows parties to contest elections using the election symbol of other parties.
Likewise, the EC has proposed amendments to provisions related to party defection. If 40% or more of the central committee members or 40% or more of the parliamentary party members decide to form a new party or join another party, it will be considered a defection, the draft states.
Furthermore, parliamentarians elected as independent candidates cannot join any political party during their term.
To prepare the draft, the EC formed a drafting committee under the leadership of its secretary. The committee held extensive discussions with political parties and other stakeholders before finalizing the report, according to the EC.
