President Bidhya Devi Bhandari has called on Nepali people to peacefully participate in the second phase of federal parliament and provincial assembly elections slated to be held in 45 districts on Thursday.

In a message to the voters issued on the eve of twin elections, the president noted that the Constitution of Nepal, adopted by the Constituent Assembly of Nepal, has made it mandatory to hold all three tiers of elections—local, provincial and federal level—by January 21, 2018. “In this connection, local level elections were successfully held earlier this year and the people participated fervently in the first phase of federal and provincial elections on November 26,” read the statement.

Stating the successful conduction of elections to federal parliament and provincial assemblies is crucial and historical for the implementation of the new constitution, the president hoped that there will be political stability in the country after the elections and the nation will move towards building a socialist economy based on social justice and equality as provisioned in the constitution.

“The participation in the upcoming elections is not just an exercise of fundamental rights to choose a people’s representative but also a concrete contribution in creating a socio-economically prosperous Nepal,” the statement further read.

The president has urged the people to enthusiastically participate in the first ever elections in Nepal based on federal structure and make the democratic process successful.