Kathmandu, May 7
Upendra Yadav, president of the Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal, has said India has no role whatsoever in the ongoing movement in the Madhesh. He said charges that this movement is India-sponsored are baseless.
Yadav, talking to members of a subcommittee formed to promote the party’s programmes, noted that political forces used to face similar allegations during their struggles against the Panchayat regime also.
Those at the helm at that time used to call forces fighting against the Panchayat regime ‘anti-national elements and foreign agents’, he pointed. Many of the accusers are in the present government also, Yadav said.
The Federal Alliance’s movement is a joint struggle meant to secure the rights of the downtrodden and poor communities, Yadav said, adding: The joint struggle will not end before the resolution of problems facing Madheshi, indigenous nationalities, Muslims, Tharus and women.
Yadav, also coordinator of the alliance, cautioned the KP Oli-led ruling coalition not to use force to suppress their movement. He said they will cause the collapse of this government if it tries to use force to quell the strife.
He described the Constitution as useless and added that their movement is meant to press for its amendment. The then president, prime minister and chair of the Political and Constitutional Dialogue Committee, have accepted in course of promulgation of the charter that there are flaws in it. “This shows there’s a need to amend this constitution.”
The Madheshi leader said they will not keep quite if the government tries to implement the constitution without amending it.
So far, we have just torched copies of the constitution, he said, adding: We will ‘scrap’ it if the (government) tries to move ahead without amending it.
