A team led by Bijay Raj Gautam, Chairperson of the Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC), and Indra Prasad Aryal, Chairperson of the Nepal Human Rights Organization, submitted an attention memorandum to Home Minister Om Prakash Aryal on January 2, urging him to ensure peace, security, and law and order during the House of Representatives by-election scheduled for March 5.
INSEC Chairperson Gautam stated that the memorandum was submitted in light of growing concerns from various parts of the country regarding incidents of violence, threats, fear and intimidation, pressure on voters, political retaliation, hate speech, and the potential weakening of law and order.
He emphasized that the election must be conducted in a manner that does not undermine citizens’ fundamental rights, particularly the right to vote, freedom of expression, and peaceful participation.
Similarly, Indra Prasad Aryal, Chairperson of the Nepal Human Rights Organization, stated that elections are a fundamental pillar of democratic practice, and therefore, the electoral process must be conducted in a peaceful, free, fair, and fear-free environment.
Through the attention memorandum, the Ministry of Home Affairs was urged to ensure effective, impartial, and human rights–friendly security arrangements across the country throughout the election period; to take immediate legal action against anyone involved in election-related violence, threats, coercion, or acts intended to create fear; to keep security agencies free from political influence and deploy them in a neutral and professional manner; to remain vigilant regarding major security challenges, including weapons looted during the Gen Z movement and inmates who escaped from jail, and to take necessary measures to boost the morale of security personnel.
The memorandum also requested the assurance of special security for women, Dalits, Indigenous nationalities, persons with disabilities, minority communities, and journalists, as well as the provision of clear directives and necessary training to security agencies in accordance with international human rights and election-related standards.
Similarly, to ensure a clean, fear-free, and impartial election, the Ministry of Home Affairs was seriously urged to enhance cooperation and coordination with civil society, human rights organizations, and election observers, and to guarantee the safety of independent observation by civil society, the media, and observers by making the processes of voting, vote counting, and result publication fully transparent.
Through the attention memorandum, INSEC and the Nepal Human Rights Organization expressed their expectation of the government’s positive initiatives to conduct the election in line with democratic values and norms, the rule of law, and respect for human rights, and also conveyed confidence that the Home Minister would take necessary steps on time.
The delegation submitting the memorandum also included INSEC Information Officer Krishna Gautam, INSEC Bagmati Province Coordinator Shiva Prasad Khakurel, Nepal Human Rights Organization Treasurer Tika Dangi, and Executive Committee Member Madhusudan Upadhyay.