Kathmandu — The Election Commission has introduced a provision allowing political parties to purchase voter details by paying a fixed fee, as per the House of Representatives election guidelines issued by the commission.
According to the guidelines, political parties can obtain voter details from across the country by paying Rs 10,000. The commission has clarified that while voter data will be provided in digital format, sensitive personal information such as date of birth, citizenship number, and mobile number will be excluded.
The Election Commission has stated that the voter details will be handed over through a pen drive or hard drive, depending on the volume of data requested.
In addition to nationwide data, the commission has also set different fee structures based on geographical coverage. Voter details of an entire province can be obtained for Rs 5,000, while voter data of a specific district or constituency can be purchased for Rs 3,000.
The provision has been introduced to facilitate election campaigning and organizational planning for political parties ahead of the upcoming House of Representatives elections.
However, the decision has raised questions in public and political circles regarding data access, privacy, and the potential use of voter information during election campaigns. The Election Commission maintains that the arrangement is in line with existing election laws and does not violate voter privacy, as confidential personal identifiers are excluded from the data set.
