CADRES PROTEST INCLUDING SUNSARI, MORANG IN PROVINCE 2

20 Nov 2015 | 07:57am

Chuman Basnet/Republica People stage sit-in at the gates of the District Administration Office in Morang on Thursday to protest alleged attempts by the political parties to include Jhapa, Morang and Sunsari districts in province number 2.

ITAHARI, Nov 20: Cadres of three political parties and locals on Thursday staged a mass rally in Itahari of Sunsari district demanding that Sunsari and Morang be left intact in federal province number 1.

Local demonstrators and leaders of the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and UCPN(Maoist) threatened to intensify their protest if Sunsari and Morang districts are divided and included in province number 2.
UML chairperson Dwarika Chaudhary of Sunsari said that his party would be compelled to intensify its protest if the district is divided to meet the demands of the agitating Madhesis.

"We have come here to protest against UCPN (Maoist) Chairperson Pushpa Kamal Dahal's proposal for dividing Sunsari and Morang districts in order to address the Madhesi demands," said Chaudhary while addressing a public gathering in Itahari.

Likewise, NC leader Ramesh Pokharel said that those who decide to divide up the districts will have to bear a huge loss.

When the decision to divide the districts is taken, all district dwellers should rise above their political interests and join the protest against the division, said Ganesh Katwal, a local leader of UCPN (Maoist).

"We urge party leaders to withdraw the proposal for dividing the districts to meet the demands of the agitating Madhes-based parties," said Bodhraj Nepal, chairperson of Civil Society Sunsari.

He added that any decision to divide the districts should not be taken without the consent of the locals. Otherwise, there will be huge resentment, according to Nepal. During the demonstration, the locals had also protested against the unofficial blockade imposed by India against Nepal.

Meanwhile, the CPN-UML Sunsari, issuing a press release on Thursday, warned of stern protests against splitting the district between two provinces.

The locals took to the streets after UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Dahal, during inter-party talks earlier this week, reportedly proposed to include the southern parts of Sunsari and Morang in province number 2.