Nepal elections: Voters line up to elect new members of Parliament

Voters in Nepal lined up Sunday to elect members of parliament in hopes that a new government would bring political stability and help with the Himalayan nation's development.

The main contestants in Sunday's election are the ruling alliance of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's Nepali Congress party and the Maoist communist party against the Nepal Communist Party (United Marxist-Leninist), headed by former Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Oli.

Security was stepped up across the country as a separate communist group known for violence in the past called for boycotting the polls and threatened to disrupt the election.

Sunday was declared a national holiday and both private and public vehicles were barred from the streets.

At the main square in the heart of the capital Kathmandu, voters lined up to cast their ballots when the booths opened at 7 a.m. (0115 GMT).

Political instability has left Nepal with 13 different governments in the past 16 years.

The frequent changes and squabbles among parties have been blamed for a slow economy.

Nepalis have seen little change since, with the same generation of leaders holding power through their control of the main political parties.

Many voters say they are tired of the same leaders retaining power and failing to deliver on promises to improve people’s lives while the country makes little progress.