The Ministry of Home Affairs on Sunday finalised two bills on holding the elections for Provincial Assemblies and the House of Representatives. After the Cabinet endorses them, the bills will be forwarded for the parliamentary process.

The ministry had expedited drafting of the bills after the Election Commission sought these two laws by July 15. The EC has proposed holding the provincial elections in the second week of October and the parliamentary polls in the third week of November.

Nirmala Bhattarai Adhikari, joint-secretary at the Home Ministry, said the bills were sent to the Cabinet after they were finalised in consultation with the Law Ministry. Once the Cabinet approves the bills, they will be sent back to the Home Ministry which will then register them at the Parliamentary Secretariat.

Adhikari said they have incorporated the ‘No Vote’ proposal in the bills, allowing voters to use the option if they think a candidate is not suitable for them. The issue of ‘No Vote’ gained prominence after the Supreme Court ordered the government, on January 5, 2014, to honour the voters’ “right to reject” all the candidates.

“We have proposed the same in both the bills,” said Adhikari.

The bills also have the provisions necessary for guaranteeing inclusive representation of women, Dalits, Muslims, indigenous nationalities, Khas Aryas, Madhesis, Tharus and backward regions in the assemblies based on a closed list of candidates.

According to the constitution, 165 lawmakers are elected under the first-past-the-post system while 110 are chosen under proportional representation in the House of Representatives. In the elections to provincial parliaments, the number of constituencies will be double the number of House of Representatives members from each province.