Of them, 20,722 suggestions were received through the CA's official website, 8,800 through email, 2,471 through toll-free telephone number, 1,080 through fax, and 243 through postal service and direct submission at the secretariat.With this, the formal process for registering feedback has come to an end, though organizations or individuals may still submit their suggestions to the CA.
"We must include the suggestions in the report to be submitted to the CA though it is not obligatory for us to include other suggestions that we may receive from now onward," lawmaker Prem Giri, who heads a CA subcommittee tasked with preparing the report, told Republica.
While 33,016 suggestions were sent through various means of communications directly to the CA secretariat, volumes of feedback collected during public hearings held on Monday and Tuesday in 240 constituencies across the country have yet to be gathered at the central secretariat.
Teams mobilized in only a few districts such as in Kathmandu, Kavre and Bhaktapur have submitted their report on Wednesday.
"Teams from most of the districts will submit their reports to the secretariat by tomorrow because most of them have informed us that they have completed 80 to 90 percent work," said Giri.
While those who participated in the interactions were concerned whether their inputs would be used in improving the draft constitution, officials at the CA secretariat said public opinion is not much likely to significantly change major features of the statute.
"It was not a referendum. It was just a campaign to understand the overall perception of the public," said a source at the secretariat. "After all, the suggestions cannot be used against what we have achieved so far through years of struggle."Also, Giri expressed similar opinion. He informed that the inputs received through interactions held across the country and through other means of communications shall not be taken as votes cast during a referendum.
"These are suggestions. We must record them all. But the CA is independent as to how to use the inputs," said Giri.
Meanwhile, the subcommittee on Wednesday met CA Chairman Subas Nembang and sought five days for categorizing, processing, analyzing the data and preparing the report.
He said the subcommittee aims to submit its report to the CA chairman on August 27.
After that, the CA's Constitutional Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee (CPDCC) will hold discussions on the report at the committee, which would be represented mostly by top leaders of all the political parties represented in the CA.
After discussion at the CDPDCC, the report will be forwarded to the Constitution Drafting Committee that will improve the draft based on inputs.
The 73-member committee will then present the updated draft constitution to the CA full House and all the 601 CA members will be allowed to register amendments.
Finally, the draft will be endorsed by two-thirds majority of the 601-member CA for promulgation.
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