Voting resumes in Malu, Dolakha after evening settlement

DOLAKHA: Voting at the Golmeshwar Secondary School polling station resumed on Thursday evening after being halted earlier in the day.

Polling had initially been disrupted when 56 ballot booklets were allegedly stolen shortly after voting began in the morning. The incident involved an attempt to assault staff at the polling station, with different parties blaming each other for the disruption.

The deadlock was resolved in the evening following a meeting of all parties, after which officials began calling voters back to the polling station. Despite searches, the stolen ballots were not recovered, raising concerns that voting might have been postponed.

Three individuals—Yagya Bahadur Shrestha of the Nepali Congress, Anil Shrestha, chairman of the Tarun Dal in Tamakoshi Rural Municipality, and Arjun Yogi of the Nepali Communist Party —have been identified in connection with the theft. Four others are in police custody, with authorities preparing for their possible release.

Once a consensus was reached among local leaders, polling resumed, and voters are being called to cast their ballots.