Kathmandu, July 27

The main opposition Nepali Congress today said its stand that the situation of confrontation after Dr Govinda KC’s hunger strike would be resolved if the government accepted provisions in the ordinance introduced by the previous NC-led government, proved right.

Welcoming the agreement reached between the government and Dr KC yesterday, the NC said the situation complicated after the government registered a bill in the Parliament removing some of the key provisions in the ordinance, and not due to Dr KC’s hunger strike or the NC’s agitation.

The party said it would continuously caution the government for honest implementation of the agreement and execute reforms in the health and education sectors.

The NC also justified the disruption of the Parliament, stating that Dr KC’s life would have been in danger had they allowed the bill to get endorsed.

“The situation would not have been resolved had we only staged a demonstration at Maitighar Mandala,” said NC Spokesperson Bishwa Prakash Sharma at a press conference at NC headquarters in Sanepa. “Dr KC’s long hunger strike, the NC’s strong presentation in the House and demonstrations by thousands of people in the streets forced the government to eventually respect public aspiration.”

Refuting allegations that the NC raised the issue only after it was relegated to opposition and that it did not have any other issues to take up, Sharma said that although Dr KC staged hunger strike for 14 times previously, it was the late Sushil Koirala-led government that formed the Mathema commission and Sher Bahadur Deuba-led government that introduced the ordinance addressing Dr KC’s demands.

“We have something to tell what we did to address Dr KC’s demands, but previous communist governments do not have anything,” said Sharma.

“So getting elected through a democratic process and having democratic characteristics are entirely different things.”

The NC also said it would have opposed the bill even if Dr KC had not staged hunger strike because it was a reform initiative taken by the NC-led government, and not that it did not have any other issue to raise.

On the occasion, Sharma also condemned the administration’s use of force in peaceful protests in Jumla, where Dr KC had staged a hunger strike, and at New Baneshwor.

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