CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has said that his party is still in favor of identity in renaming Koshi Province.
Addressing an office-bearers' meeting of the Maoist Center held at Paris Danda on Wednesday, Prime Minister Prachanda said that there was a mistake in adopting ‘Koshi’ as the name for Province 1.
"We are in favor of identity in renaming Province 1", Prachanda said while briefing the meeting, "we could not take a stand while deciding on the name Koshi."
He said that even now the agenda of identity held by the Maoist Center will not go down. "What I want to convince you is that our party will not back off from the issue of identity even now", he said.
Of the 93-member Province Assembly, on March 1, the name of Province 1 was changed to Koshi Province, after 82 lawmakers cast their votes in favor of the motion while four others voted against it.
No sooner the Province 1 adopted 'Koshi' as the name for Province 1, than pro-idenity groups including Kirat Yakthung Chumlung, Kirat Rai Yayokkha, Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities, Sherpa Association of Nepal and Kirat Dharma Sahitya Tatha Utthan Sangh have been staging demonstrations demanding that the Koshi Province be renamed.
The demonstration further intensified after Padam Limbu alias Lajehang, who sustained critical injuries during a protest, passed away in the course of treatment.
