KATHMANDU, March 8: Fifteen non-governmental organisations led by the Forum for Women, Law, and Development (FWLD) have made public a preliminary election observation report on the 2026 House of Representatives (HoR) election, highlighting gaps in gender, disability and inclusion considerations.
Speaking at a discussion programme in Kathmandu on Sunday, participants said the election process was not sufficiently gender-, disability- and inclusion-friendly. They argued that several polling centres did not fully comply with the guidelines set by the Election Commission (EC) and stressed the need for a detailed assessment of polling station arrangements.
Presenting the preliminary observation report from gender, disability and inclusion perspectives, FWLD advocate Sagar Pathak said the monitoring was conducted before voting, during the voting process and during vote counting.
“Observation was carried out at polling locations before voting, during voting and during vote counting using the J-C methodology,” Pathak said, adding that the report was prepared in collaboration with 15 non-governmental organisations led by FWLD.
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According to him, the report was prepared after direct observation of 160 polling booths in 24 districts across all seven provinces. However, Pathak said the observers faced time constraints as approval for election observation from the EC was received late. Despite the limited preparation time, 160 observers were trained and deployed to polling centres nationwide.
FWLD Executive Director and advocate Sabin Shrestha said many polling centres were not prepared in accordance with the EC’s guidelines. He noted that minimum standards were not fully met and that several polling stations lacked adequate information facilities.
Shrestha added that although most polling stations had separate queues for men and women, other groups were often overlooked. He pointed out the absence of first-aid services, drinking water, breastfeeding rooms and resting areas at many polling centres. Polling stations were also found to be insufficiently disability-friendly, with inadequate arrangements for elderly voters and people with physical disabilities, particularly regarding exit routes after voting.
Senior advocate Mira Dhungana, who also participated in the observation, said polling stations were generally women-friendly but lacked proper attention to exit management after voters cast their ballots.
The TEWA organisation participated in the observation by visiting 12 polling booths in six districts. TEWA representative Jyoti Rana said queues at polling stations were often disorganised and alleged that polling officials behaved rudely during the observation process. She also claimed that women police personnel were treated differently at some polling centres.
Similarly, Bindra Maharjan from the Collective Campaign for Peace said foreign observers appeared to receive greater priority than Nepali observers during the election process.
Chairperson of the Nepal Disabled Women Association, Sushmita Shrestha, also raised concerns that polling centres were not adequately designed to accommodate voters with disabilities.
During the programme, organisers also displayed photographs taken during the observation, depicting polling station arrangements, voting in progress and vote-counting activities.
