Neel Kantha Uprety discusses his role at the Election Commission of Nepal and the changes that took place since 1990 through its role as a constitutionally appointed independent body. He details the changes and challenges encountered in voter registration methods, voter education, the type of electoral system used, and the creation of the election management body through legislation and the constitution. He also talks about the methods adopted to build trust among the people and the need to have open consultations between political parties through formal and informal meetings. He describes how the commission became more transparent over the years with increasing interaction with civil society through regular meetings, and grassroots level projects. Uprety details the election process in Nepal from the commission’s perspective in terms of scaling up staff, training, use of ballot boxes, the introduction of electronic voting, and procurement. He offers insights into common problems encountered on election day, such as voter identification and the use of identification cards, and discusses how to overcome them.

 

Case Study: Managing the Political and Practical: Nepal's Constituent Assembly Elections, 2006-2008

Alok Shukla discusses his work with the Election Commission of India. He talks about the importance of election safety and sheds light on the police deployment strategy that surrounds Indian elections. He opens his discussion with an explanation of the monitoring systems used to keep election violence to a minimum. He continues by speaking of other accountability measures like web-cameras with a direct line to the Election Commission placed in to polling stations in order to ensure proper practice. He then explains the system of vulnerability mapping in order to concentrate the most resources to the most vulnerable polling states. Shukla adds a detailed story about enfranchising communities that had been subject to voter intimidation. He concludes his discussion with the monitoring structures in place to ensure the impartiality of the Election Commission.

 

Case Study:  Policing Election Day: Vulnerability Mapping in india, 2006-2009