KATHAMDNU, August 9

Chairman of the Constitutional-Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee Baburam Bhattarai on Sunday tabled the revised draft of the new constitution in the Constituent Assembly amidst protest from different parties.

Addressing the CA while submitting the report, Bhattarai said the parties fighting against the monarchy would not commit the same mistake that politicians like BP Koirala committed in the past. He said BP Koirala’s mistake allowed 30-year-long autocracy in the country.

Bhattarai said they were not for repeating the history. “We do have differences but 90 per cent Nepalis are in favour of drafting constitution from CA,” he said, adding that wanting more and more rights could lead to dissolution of the CA and help autocratic forces. Bhattarai urged all the parties and the disadvantaged groups to remain alert against those staging drama inside the CA, hinting at RPP-Nepal. “We should try to draft maximum progressive constitution, but if that was not possible we should go for whatever we could achieve,” he said.

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Many NC and UML CA members lauded Bhattarai’s speech by thumping the tables.

He said the regressive forces had launched protest, as they knew their attempt to derail the constitution-drafting process would fail.

When Bhattarai was speaking CA members of RPP-N protested the revised draft chanting slogans in the well. Earlier RPP-N Chairman Kamal Thapa and Sarbendra Nath Shukla on behalf of United Democratic Madhesi Front, along with many other Madhesi and Janajati CA members, protested against the draft constitution.

Shukla said federalism was meant for the underprivileged communities but this demarcation had only benefited the groups that had been utilising the state’s resources for long.

Challenging the revised draft of constitution, some CA members representing NC, UML, UCPN-M and MJF-Democratic said they would not accept the constitution and would begin struggle.

CA Chair Subas Chandra Nembang said the revised draft would be provided to all the CA members by Monday morning for study and discussion on the same would begin at 9:00am on Tuesday.

Earlier following the CPDCC meeting at Singha Durbar, Bhattarai said the CPDCC had entrusted the special committee with revising the draft. “Those unhappy with the boundaries of the six states should not lose hope, as the parties were in favour of forming a federal commission to work out details of the boundaries,” he said, adding changes in boundaries could still be possible after holding discussion with experts and receiving report from the federal commission.

Some members of the CPDCC walked out of its meeting denouncing yesterday’s agreement reached between the signatories of the 16-point pact. RPP-N also walked out of the meeting. Later, Kamal Thapa said his party would launch an agitation against the four parties’ agreement from August 14.