Nepal's Election Commission asks NHRC to obtain passes to monitor polls

Kathmandu, Apr 8 : The Election Commission (EC) in Nepal has asked the country's Human Rights Commission to obtain valid passes if it wants to monitor April 10 polls.

However, the Commission said the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Nepal, United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN) and International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), do not need to obtain passes for observation of the polls.

In a press statement, NHRC asked concerned authorities to let its staffers monitor the poll process. It said it is concerned by the decision of the EC, as reported by nepalnews.com.

Earlier, the Home Ministry had said that all organisations including OHCHR, ICRC and UNMIN must get passes from the EC to monitor polls.

NHRC had said it needed no accreditation to observe poll process because the constitution has given it that authority.

ANI