National
TU told to conduct pending FSU votes after May 14
The elections of Free Student Union (FSU) that could not take place as scheduled on March 1 have been postponed in view of the upcoming local level elections, which is slated for May 14.The elections of Free Student Union (FSU) that could not take place as scheduled on March 1 have been postponed in view of the upcoming local level elections, which is slated for May 14.
The Election Commission (EC) on Sunday wrote to the Tribuvan University (TU), instructing it to postpone the FSU elections and comply with the election code that came into force on March 1.
EC Commissioner Sudhir Shah said the FSU polls, which could not take place on March 1, will have to be postponed until local level elections are over.
“As bad blood among the different student unions across the country could create uneasy situation for the security in the upcoming local elections, the EC decided to instruct the government to postpone the remaining FSU polls,” he said.
Amid clashes and violence, the FSU elections were held in around 170 constituent and affiliated colleges of the Tribhuvan University on March 1, with thousands of students exercising their franchise for the first time in eight years.
According to the TU, the elections were held in just 22 of its 60 constituent colleges, with 150 of the 1,084 affiliated colleges conducting the polls.
The elections could not be held at several constituent colleges, including the TU Central Campus, Ratna Rajya Campus, Tri-Chandra Campus, Nepal Commerce Campus, Shanker Dev Campus and Amrit Science College in Kathmandu; Prithvi Narayan Campus in Pokhara; and Mahendra Multiple Campus in Nepalgunj.
Meanwhile, the EC has also instructed Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and his office to take approval of the EC before taking helicopter service for government-related works.
As per the election code, the government ministers are barred from using helicopters for politicking or electioneering. After Prime Minister Dahal flew on Nepal Army’s helicopter to attend an event organised by his party, CPN (Maoist Centre) in Kavre on Friday, the EC was compelled to issue an instruction in the name of the Prime Minister’s Office, reminding about the do’s and don’ts during the poll code enforcement period.