Three-day holiday in Nepal for March 5 polls

Kathmandu, Feb 24 (PTI) Nepal on Tuesday declared a three-day holiday for the general elections even as the border with India in Madhesh province will remain closed for 72 hours till voting is completed on March 5.

The cabinet, during a meeting held earlier in the day, decided to grant holidays on March 4, 5 and 6 at the recommendation of the Election Commission, Home Minister and government spokesperson Om Prakash Aryal told the media.

Meanwhile, border points connecting the Bara and Parsa districts in Madhesh province with India will remain closed for those three days, officials said.

In a meeting between the Nepali and the Indian security officials on Saturday at the Integrated Check Post in Birgunj in southern Nepal, it was decided to completely seal the border during the election period.

Both sides agreed to shut down the border for 72 hours starting March 3 to ensure the peaceful conduct of the election, said Bara Chief District Officer, Dharmendra Kumar Mishra, who represented Nepal in the meeting.

The Nepal-India border in Madhesh province will remain closed from March 3 until the completion of voting on March 5, he added.

Earlier on Sunday, Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari at a programme in Kathmandu said good governance can be maintained only through elections, as elections are the backbone of democracy and assured March 5 polls would be held as per schedule.

This is the first election since last year's violent Gen-Z protests that toppled the K P Sharma Oli-led coalition government. PTI SBP SKS SKS NPK NPK