PM holds talks with Dalits, women activists

Kathmandu, August 29

Prime Minister Sushil Koirala today held dialogue with Dalit leaders and urged them to withdraw their protest programmes, but the latter refused.

Samata Foundation Chair Padam Sundas said Dalit leaders did not find the PM serious about addressing their concerns.

“When the PM did not respond to our concerns positively, we left the meeting hall telling the PM that we will continue our agitation,” Sundas added.

He said some of the NC Constituent Assembly members who were also in the delegation told the PM that they would register amendment proposal in the CA against the provisions of the draft constitution.

The PM also held dialogue with women activists and CA members to know their concerns on constitutional issues.

Women rights activists Sapana Malla said they told the PM that there must be the ‘or’ provision in the draft constitution as far as citizenship provisions were concerned. “Women married to foreign men should have the right to confer Nepali citizenship by descent to their children,” she said.

The PM told the women activists that he would discuss their concerns with the major parties.

Meanwhile, UDMF leaders Rajendra Shrestha, Ram Naresh Ray, Govind Chaudhari and Rajkishore Singh today handed over their letter to the PM in which they mentioned what conditions the government needed to meet before talks on constitutional issues could commence.