Madhesi leaders seek to forge common stance before PM Dahal's India visit

Madhesi leaders seek to forge common stance

The Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha has said that it cannot accept the report of the Local Body Restructuring Commission that proposes to form 565 local units (village and municipal councils) in the new federal set up. Morcha leaders said that the proposed local setup was a deliberate attempt to disfranchise the Madhesi constituencies. Morcha allies have also demanded the commission be disbanded, arguing that the constitutional body was formed without consultation with the agitating parties. 

They said that the population should be the sole basis for restructuring on the local bodies in the Tarai plain. The proposed report has taken both the population and geography into account while restructuring the local bodies. Sadbhawana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato said that the local bodies should be restructured after resolving the row over the federal boundaries. He stressed the need for a broader consensus among the political parties to determine the numbers of village and municipal council.