Kathmandu, May 14

Top leaders of three major parties have said that the opinion of the local people will be sought if there is a need to separate Kailali and Kanchanpur districts from the far-western region in course of demarcating federal provinces.

Maoist chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’, Nepali Congress president Sushil Koirala and CPN-UML chief Jhala Nath Khanal said through a joint statement on Monday that the opinion of the people of Kailali and Kanchanpur will be consulted if there is the need to separate these districts.

Tharu people have demanded that these two districts should be delineated into a Tharuhat province while another joint struggle committee has stressed that the far-western region should remain intact.

The two groups have been demonstrating on the streets to get their demands met.

Top leaders of three major parties had reached the Ministry of Peace and Reconstruction as demanded by the representatives of the joint struggle committee holding talks with the government.

The opinion of the people will be sought in case there is the need to separate the two districts from the region. If there is no such a need, the matter is resolved, said Nepali Congress leader and Deputy Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula.

Maoist leader Lekh Raj Bhatta said that there is no reason to have suspicion on the commitment expressed by the top leaders. Now the different communities residing in the district have to be taken into confidence, he said.

The members of the joint struggle committee stressed that a referendum should be held to take the opinion of the people to which Maoist leader and head of the government talks team Barsa Man Pun agreed.

Nepali Congress leader Ramesh Lekhak said that the commitment of the top leaders partially addresses the demands of the people of the far western region. There is no reason to be skeptical and the form of struggle should be changed, he said.