Dhanusha, March 8 -- The Election Commission (EC) has directed officials to delay the announcement of the final result in Dhanusha-1 after disqualifying the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) candidate just days before the election.

The commission had scrapped the candidacy of RSP nominee Kishori Sah Kamal two days before polling citing he was blacklisted for banking offences.

According to records provided to the commission, Sah had been blacklisted on October 17, 2022, and December 22, 2023.

As the disqualification came only 48 hours before voting, ballot papers could not be reprinted. As a result, voters cast ballots that still included the party's 'Bell' symbol.

Initially, the Office of the Returning Officer decided that votes cast for...