Kathmandu: Nepal's Defence Minister Sharad Singh Bhandari has sparked a row here with demands being
voiced that he be sacked for allegedly calling for the
separation of the Terai plains from the country.
Bhandari, a senior leader of Madhesi People's Rights
Forum (Democratic) which is a key ally of the ruling
coalition, allegedly threatened that the 22 districts of Terai
would be separated from the country if a four-point deal
signed between the Joint Madhesi Front and the UCPN-Maoist was
not implemented.
Nepali Congress president Sushil Koirala and top leaders
of UCPN-Maoist have slammed the Defence Minister over the
controversial remarks. The opposition as well as ruling party
leaders have sought his dismissal for the alleged remarks at a
function in Kathmandu.
Nepali Congress (NC) President Sushil Koirala has termed
the statement made by Bhandari as "irresponsible".
Koirala said such "irresponsible" remarks at a time when
the country was in transitional phase would be interpreted
differently.
Two senior leaders of UCPN-Maoist also denounced
Bhandari’s remarks, saying it had offended the nationalists
and demanded that he be relieved from the responsibilities at
the earliest.
Nepal's Terai plains are home to about half of the
country's 30 million people, and the residents of the region,
known as Madhesis, have long complained of discrimination by
the country's hill communities.
The pro-Terai parties argue that people in the Madhesi-
dominated southern plains have long been treated as
second-class citizens in Nepal, where hill-origin elites
dominate politics, the security forces and business.
The Maoists and the Madhesi alliance reportedly inked a
pact ahead of last month's prime ministerial election that
included the provision to oppose the idea of a state
restructuring commission and ensure en masse entry of Madhesis
into the army among others.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, September 28, 2011, 21:48