Kathmandu, Aug. 29: The Constitutional Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee under the Constituent Assembly today discussed the preamble and the name of a new constitution.
The meeting also deliberated on the amendable and inamenable topics of the new constitution, committee secretary Mukunda Sharma said.
The United Front of Parties Advocating Identity has taken exception to the name of the new constitution as ‘The Constitution of Nepal’ which the parties were said to have agreed on Thursday’s meeting, coordinator of the Front, Ram Kumar Rai, told journalists.
Fringe parties represented in the Legislature-Parliament had formed the Front to forge common view on federalism, form of governance and state restructuring.
Rai said that may be the big political parties might have reached an agreement on this topic but denied the same had been reached in the Constitutional Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee. He added that the Front reiterated in the committee meeting today its demand that the name of the new constitution should be ‘The Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal’.
Front coordinator Rai further said that the Front has also demanded including the terms – federal democratic, secular and inclusive – in the preamble of the new constitution.
The parties are close to an understanding on the proposed preamble of the new constitution which states – This constitution cannot be amended so as to alter the wordings ‘nationality, sovereignty, territorial integrity and sovereignty vested in the people’, according to Arjun Narsingh KC of the Nepali Congress.
He said an agreement has been reached among the parties regarding the requirement that these topics which would be included in the preamble could be amended by a two-thirds majority in parliament and through a referendum.
Committee chairman Dr Baburam Bhattarai presided over the meeting. The committee is holding its meetings daily to forge consensus on the new constitution with the deadline of September 10 for preparing the draft of the constitution is looming.
Source: RSS
