Kathmandu, March 4 : As Nepal heads to parliamentary elections on Thursday, Acting Chief Election Commissioner Ram Prasad Bhandari has urged voters across the country to exercise their franchise without fear.

The country is going to the polls to elect 275 members of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the federal parliament. Of the total seats, 165 will be elected under the first-past-the-post (FPTP) system, while 110 will be filled through the proportional representation system.

The elections are being held in the aftermath of the Gen Z uprising of September 8-9 last year, during which 77 people lost their lives, while private and public property worth over NPR 84 billion was damaged, according to government estimates.

There was initial uncertainty about the direction the Himalayan nation would take following the Gen Z movement. However, the interim government led by Prime Minister Sushila Karki steered the country towards elections, and Nepal now appears to be back on a democratic course with the polls scheduled for Thursday.

Bhandari said in a message that all necessary preparations for the conduct and management of the elections have been completed, while urging voters to exercise their right to vote.

Voting will take place across the country from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, according to the Election Commission.

â??Since elections are the foundation of a representative system of governance and provide legitimacy and assurance to the peopleâ??s right to be governed through representatives of their choice, I sincerely urge all voters to attend their respective polling centres and cast their votes confidently on Thursday,â?? he said.

He added that the Commission is fully prepared to conduct the election in a clean, free, fair and fear-free environment.

In a separate statement, the election body said that all essential election materials, including ballot papers and ballot boxes, have been delivered to polling centres nationwide.

Preparations such as the construction and management of polling stations, arrangements for accessibility, gender- and disability-friendly facilities, and the deployment of election personnel have also been completed.

More than 18.9 million registered voters are eligible to exercise their franchise, according to the Commission.

Of them, 9.66 million are male and 9.24 million are female.

A total of 3,406 candidates are contesting under the FPTP system, while 3,135 candidates are listed under the proportional representation system, the Commission said.

/IANS