BIRATNAGAR, Oct 11 (Asoj 25): A legal route to change Koshi Province’s name has opened more than three and a half years after it was named. The Provincial Assembly on Saturday passed rules governing its secretariat’s operations, formally allowing proposals to amend the province’s name.
The second Provincial Assembly, elected in 2022 (2079 BS), adopted the rules as it approaches four years in office. A provision allowing the province’s name to be changed has revived a debate that had begun to subside.
The first Provincial Assembly, elected in 2017 (2074 BS), failed to name the province. The assembly formed after the November 20, 2022 (Mangsir 4, 2079 BS) election named it Koshi by a two-thirds majority on March 1, 2023 (Falgun 17, 2079 BS).
Groups demanding a name reflecting the region’s ethnic and cultural identities launched protests after the decision. However, the campaign weakened following the Gen Z movement. On Friday, protesters demonstrated against the name during a rally in Biratnagar ahead of the opening of the Kirat Rai Yayokkha general convention.
On Saturday, assembly rules drafting committee chair Rewati Raman Bhandari presented the committee’s report. The assembly held a discussion on its principles that same day.
During the debate, Ramesh Kumar Basnet, chief whip of the ruling CPN-UML, spoke in favour of passing the rules. Gopal Tamang, chief whip of the main opposition Nepali Congress, also expressed support.
With both major parties backing the proposal, the rules were declared unanimously passed before the assembly’s ninth session ended. Until Saturday, the second Provincial Assembly had operated under rules adopted by the first assembly.
The decision has reopened the debate over the province’s name. Following the March 1, 2023 (Falgun 17, 2079 BS) vote, which secured more than a two-thirds majority for the name Koshi, ethnic organisations and other groups advocating an identity-based name formed a joint front and staged sustained protests across the province.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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