Second round on 14 June

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal consults Election Commission (EC) officials on Sunday before announcing the date for second round of local elections. Photo: RSS

A day after forging a consensus with Madhesi parties to hold local elections in two phases, the government on Sunday announced the date of second round of polls: 14 June.

The Election Commission (EC) will now hold first round of local elections in three hill provinces (3, 4 and 6) on the previously announced date of 14 May. Exactly a month later, second round of polls will be held in remaining four provinces (1, 2, 5 and 7).

Of the four provinces where local polls will be held on 14 June, one is Tarai-only province (Province 2) and three others are divided between hills and plains. Madhesi parties wanted elections in these provinces one month later, saying they needed time to prepare. They are not against elections in three hill provinces early because they do not have high hopes from these constituencies.

Nepali Congress (NC) sources say Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal will resign and back Sher Bahadur Deuba to become the next Prime Minister between these two rounds of polls.

Before announcing the date of second round of elections, Dahal consulted the EC officials and UML Chair KP Oli. The main opposition has not officially objected to the decision to hold polls in two rounds. But some UML leaders have argued that holding polls first in the hills and then in the Tarai will widen the chasm between the two reasons.

On Friday, after two days of intense negotiations, the ruling Maoist-NC coalition had finally succeeded in persuading the Madhesi Front to participate in elections.

For that, the ruling coalition has agreed to revise the constitution amendment bill before passing it within a week. In response, the Front, which now comprises the newly-unified Rashtriya Janata Party and the Federal Socialist Party, has agreed to call off its agitation.

Madhesi parties affiliated to the Front were left out of the Constitution writing process in 2015. They rejected the Constitution pushed through by the Big Three parties, and spearheaded  a six-month long  agitation in the country's southern plains. During this time, India also cut off supply of fuel and other essential commodities to Nepal to help the Madhesi cause.

However, instead of capitulating to Indian pressure, the Oli government pushed the Himalayan republic closer to China. In response, New Delhi helped cobble a new coalition between Dahal and Deuba, ousted Oli and formed a new government seemingly more accommodative to Madhesi grievances.

But reaching a consensus with Madhesi parties was not a cakewalk even for Dahal. Frustrated by failed negotiations, he announced the date for elections and decided to go for it with or without Madhesi parties last week.

But six Madhesi parties, excluding Upendra Yadav's Federal Socialist Forum, suddenly announced unification and showed flexibility in reaching a deal. They had reached an understanding on key issues on Friday when President Bidya Bhandari was returning home after a six-day state visit to India. The next day, they said 'it was a deal'.

However, no written agreement has been signed yet between the two sides yet. Once they do and the Constitution is amended, implementation of Nepal's new charter – drafted by elected representatives of people for the first time in history – will be smooth.