KATHMANDU: In an attempt to find ways to bridge the widening gap on the Citizenship Bill between the Nepali Congress (NC)-led coalition government and President Bidya Devi Bhandari, NC leaders, including Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, have reached Sheetal Niwal to meet the President.
The distance between the government and Sheetal Niwas increased after President Bidya Devi Bhandari put the Citizenship Bill on hold for 15 days and sent it back after it was passed by both houses of the Federal Parliament, the House of Representatives and the National Assembly.
A team led by Prime Minister and NC President Deuba, including Vice Presidents Purna Bahadur Khadka, Dhanraj Gurung, General Secretary Gagan Thapa, Bishwa Prakash Sharma, among others, have reached at Sheetal Niwas for discussion.
According to Baluwatar sources, the NC team will request President Bhandari to validate the Citizenship Bill. The NC is going to inform the President that holding the Citizenship Bill could impact the election environment adversely. Although the bill was passed by the National Assembly, after the President signaled that it would be put on hold, NC started taking steps to validate the bill.
Earlier, President Bhandari had a discussion with the team led by Loktantrik Samajwadi Party President Mahant Thakur at Sheetal Niwas. The President stated that she had no interest in the Citizenship Bill and made it clear that she sent the Bill back to the House of Representatives with a message as per the Constitution.
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