Nepal to hold presidential election in March

Kathmandu, Feb 23 (IANS) Nepal will hold its presidential election on March 13, the Election Commission (EC) announced on Friday.

The election body set the date for the election after EC officials held separate meetings with political party leaders including Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli on Thursday, according to the Commission spokesman Navaraj Dhakal.

The new president and vice-president is elected through voting by the Electoral College comprising parliamentarians of the Federal Parliament and Provincial Assemblies, a month after the formation of Federal Parliament as per the constitutional provisions, reports Xinhua news agency.

"There will be a separate election to choose new vice president a week after the presidential election," EC Spokesman Dhakal said.

The tenures of current President Bidya Devi Bhandari and Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun will be over soon, who were elected to the posts in October 2015.

The presidential election comes more than two months after the Himalayan nation held landmark Federal Parliament and Provincial Assembly elections simultaneously in two phases in November and December 2017.