Nepal Maoists take shock lead in vote count

Nepal's Maoist former rebels took a shock early lead yesterday in an election aimed at cementing a peace deal that ended a decade-long civil war. Early tallies from Thursday's vote show the Maoists lead in 65 out of 122 constituencies where counting has begun.

They have also won 23 out of the 33 constituencies where results have been declared, election officials said. The Maoists say they are committed to democracy but are still classified as a terrorist organisation by the United States.

"This is the people's victory," hundreds chanted outside a counting centre in Kathmandu, many with the hammer and sickle painted on their faces or with Maoist flags wrapped around their heads.

Final results of the election, Nepal's first in nine years, could take around 10 days and are almost certain to lead to a coalition government, analysts say.

An elected 601-member special assembly is supposed to write a new constitution and usher in a republic in the impoverished Himalayan state, ending a 240-year-old Hindu monarchy. Maoists' leader Prachanda, whose nom de guerre means fierce in Nepali, won a landslide victory in his constituency. He emerged from a counting centre with his forehead smeared with vermilion and his head swathed in layers of marigold garlands.

"We will create a stronger basis for sustainable peace ... economic development and a federal republic by including all sections and communities of people.

"We will establish greater national unity with all political parties after the election," he said, in a statement signalling his commitment to a coalition government, analysts said.

Kunda Dixit, editor of the weekly Nepali Times, said: "At the rate it is going, the Maoists will be the number one party.

"Trends so far suggest that there was an overwhelming desire on the part of mostly young voters for change, peace and development."

There are 240 seats decided on a first-past-the-post basis, with another 335 seats decided by proportional representation and 26 to be nominated by the cabinet.

Few results are in from the southern plains, home to nearly half of the population, and Maoists are thought to have weaker support there. The complex system also means the former guerillas are very unlikely to obtain a majority.

"The trends don't reflect how they would do in the proportional elections," said a Western diplomat.

A Maoist victory would be hard to stomach for Nepal's conservative army, traditionally loyal to the king, as well as for the governments of the United States and India. New Delhi worries it could encourage India's own Maoist rebels.