The Election Commission has requested the general public to report violations of the election code of conduct with supporting evidence.

The constitutional election management body made the appeal as political parties and their candidates began electioneering, reaching voters' doorsteps ahead of the March 5 election. The commission has asked the candidates to refrain from campaigning except for holding meetings with voters and collecting feedback and suggestions until February 19.

“We, in consent from the contesting parties, have committed to the effective implementation of the code of conduct,” said Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, spokesperson for the commission. “While the commission and its subordinate offices are conducting strict surveillance, it also wants the support of the general public in reporting.”

The code of conduct for the upcoming elections came into force on January 19. The 49-page do’s and don'ts bar political parties or candidates from production, use, distribution or display of garments or items bearing the election symbol (such as jackets, shirts, vests, T-shirts, caps, scarves, masks, badges, or any other kind of clothing) or stickers, logos, bags, badges, tattoos or similar symbolic materials.

It states that no government, semi-government, or public institution, school, or university premises may be used for gatherings, campaigns, or publicity purposes. The use of children in election campaigns is prohibited.

No rallies, assemblies, or public meetings that obstruct public transportation are allowed for campaigning purposes. The code also prohibits the spread of false, misleading, or divisive information on social media. Likewise, creating fake accounts or posting false content on social media that could negatively affect the election is prohibited. It also bars any government from holding foundation-stone-laying or inauguration ceremonies during this period.

Ten days after its enforcement, the commission sought clarification from 23 candidates and institutions after finding their actions problematic. The commission doesn’t seek clarifications in every complaint. Monitoring teams at the central and subordinate offices decide which complaints to entertain based on their severity.

“Studies are ongoing in 12 clarifications received so far,” said Bhattarai. “Further actions will be taken in the cases if the studies suggest the violations were deliberate and repetitive.”

A Central Monitoring Committee comprising 11 members has been formed under the leadership of an election commissioner to monitor the code of conduct. It also includes representatives from various ministries and security forces. Similarly, at the district level, district monitoring committees have been formed under the chief district election commissioner.

The code of conduct states that violators can be fined up to Rs100,000 or have their candidacies cancelled. In addition, candidate/candidates could be barred from running for office for up to six years. It also allows the commission to publicly disclose the names of violators and details of their violations.

In addition to monitoring code of conduct violations, the commission has mobilised its expert teams to curb the spread of misinformation and disinformation. “Our teams are vigilant around the clock to stop the spread of toxic information,” said Bhattarai, adding that, along with social media and other digital media platforms, they are also checking the misuse of artificial intelligence and deepfakes.

The commission has identified around 200 cases of misleading or fraudulent information over the past 10 days. It has written to the concerned agencies to take action under the Electronic Transactions Act and the National Telecommunications Authority Acts. While 120 cases have been sent to the Nepal Police cyber bureau, 15 misleading pieces of content circulated by various media platforms have been forwarded to the Nepal Press Council for further action.

In addition, the commission has received 1,677 queries in its call centre. Of these, the highest number, 906 queries, were related to the voter list. This was followed by 135 queries on the code of conduct, 61 on voter education, and 575 on other issues, he said.