KATHMANDU, March 6: The silent period for the presidential election scheduled for Thursday will start from 12 pm tonight. 

The Election Commission (EC) has stated that the silence period will start from 12 midnight today and said that publicity works cannot be conducted during the silent period.

In order to conduct elections in a free, fair, reliable, transparent and fearless environment, EC Spokesperson Shaligram Sharma Paudel said that the prohibition of publicity will be in effect from 48 hours before the polling day until the polling stations are closed on the polling day.

The EC in a statement has asked not to solicit votes and be involved in publicity campaigns by any means. According to Chapter 2 of the Election (Offences and Punishment) Act, 2007 and Election Code of Conduct, 2079, conducting any type of discussion, interactive meeting, conference, workshop, seminar, etc., in favor of or against the candidate, including election publicity during the silent period is prohibited. 

“Any kind of propaganda, asking for votes, asking for votes through electronic media such as SMS, Facebook, Viber, making statements against the code of conduct, issuing press releases, publishing and broadcasting, and disseminating win-loss prediction materials through the media, such practices are prohibited,” it reads. 

The EC has urged all concerned stakeholders to comply with the rules. “The EC sincerely requests all concerned to maintain the integrity and dignity of the election by following the election law and code of conduct,” it said in the statement.

 
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