UML’s anti-autonomy stance

Kathmandu, June 28:

The CPN-UML was against any implicit or explicit wording or expression that would restrict the new constitution from carving out more than one province across the Madhes, according to the party’s chief whip in the Constituent Assembly Ram Chandra Jha.

The party’s parliamentary body held a meeting today to discuss the current political issues including the demand for a single autonomous Madhes state raised by the Madhes-based parties in the parliament.

“Our party’s stance is that there needs to be more provinces across the Tarai. We will not compromise on our stance in the name of resolving the deadlock. We are ready to struggle both in the parliament and on the streets if need be,” Jha said.

According to him, party general secretary Jhala Nath Khanal briefed the UML lawmakers on all the current political issues particularly the Madhesis’ demands and other leaders expressed their opinion and sought elaboration on some issues from the party leadership.

Jha said that the UML lawmakers felt that even though there was no wording like ‘One Madhes One Province’ in the agreement signed between the Madhesi parties and the government in March, the implied meaning of the document could restrict the nation from carving more than one province across the Tarai.

He further said that his party was against the demand of group wise-entry of Madhesis into the Nepal army. “Group-wise entry will weaken the basic principle of individual merits and UML is against this notion,” he said.