Beginning with the upcoming parliamentary elections, no candidate will be allowed to contest from more than one constituency, putting an end to the practice going on for 27 years.

The bills on the Election of Legislature Parliament and Provincial Assemblies have proposed barring leaders contesting from two different electoral constituencies at the same time.

Top leaders of the political parties traditionally stand for more than one parliamentary seat with an aim to win at least one constituency.

Since the candidate winning both the seats has to vacate one, the Election Commission has to hold the elections again in those constituencies at an added cost of millions of rupees.

Clause 14 of both the bills says a candidate can contest from only one electoral constituency. “The Election Commission will annul the candidacy from all the constituencies if a candidate is found to be contesting from more than one electoral constituency,” reads the clause.

The ministry has registered both the bills in the Legislature-Parliament for endorsement after the Cabinet passed them on Sunday.

The House has to approve the bills without amendment for the provision to come into effect in the federal and provincial elections to be conducted before January 21 next year.

Of the nine top leaders of major parties contesting from two constituencies in the second Constituent Assembly elections in 2013, four won from both the places.

CPN-UML leaders Madhav Kumar Nepal, Jhala Nath Khanal and Bam Dev Gautam, NC leaders Sher Bahadur Deuba and Sushil Koirala and CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal had contested from two constituencies from two different districts.

Sanghiya Samajbadi Forum Nepal Chairman Upendra Yadav, Nepal Loktantrik Forum chief Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar and Rastriya Janata Party leader Sharat Singh Bhandari had also run for two seats each.

Among them, Nepal, Khanal, Deuba and Koirala won both the seats while the others became victorious in only one constituency. Bhandari, however, lost both the constituencies.

The bills ready to be tabled in the Legialature-Parliament within a week also propose a three percent threshold for Federal Parliament and 1.5 percent for the Provincial Parliament, besides one direct election victory, for a party to qualify for proportional representation seats.