Three to contest in Amdo MP by-election

The Election Commission (EC) of the Central Tibetan Administration on Monday announced three candidates short-listed from a preliminary round of voting to fill a seat made vacant following the resignation of an Amdo member of the Tibetan Parliament-in-exile.

The three short-listed candidates are Tashi Dhondub from Nepal, who secured 347 votes; Tsangyang Gyatso from Dharamshala with 141 votes; and Karma Gelek from Bandhara Tibetan Settlement with 107 votes. Exile Tibetans from Amdo province now residing in India, Nepal, and Bhutan had nominated the three in a first round of voting on 17 February.

Lukar Jam, who was second in line in the first round with 194 votes, withdrew in protest, stating that the EC has infringed election rules. He said that a new rule passed by the Parliament in October 2011 had scrapped the by-election rule, instead calling on the next in line with the highest number of votes in the original election to fill the vacant seat.

“Although I could have had the opportunity to participate in the election, I withdrew as a matter of principle as I feel it is not right to ignore the election rules,” he said, speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the EC’s press conference.

The final round of voting will be held on 9 June. The results of the by-election will be declared on 20 June.

Kirti Dolkar Lhamo had resigned as a member in November, after being elected to the 15th parliament in March 2011.