KATHMANDU: Former Prime Minister and Nepali Communist Party leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal has described the current House of Representatives as a “rainbow Parliament,” saying it reflects the inclusion and representation achieved through years of struggle and sacrifice.
Addressing the House of Representatives at the newly constructed Parliament building on Tuesday, Prachanda said the present Parliament was institutionalized through the contributions, sacrifices, blood, and sweat of millions of people.
“We have shed immense sacrifice, blood, and sweat to create this rainbow Parliament. I feel proud,” he said.
He stated that despite differences in political strength or size among parties, the Parliament had become a symbol of representation for historically marginalized and oppressed communities.
“This House has become a rainbow of the neglected and oppressed classes,” he added.
Highlighting changes in representation over the years, Prachanda noted that there are currently 17 Dalit representatives and 96 women lawmakers in Parliament.
“In the 1980s, there were only six women in Parliament. Today there are 96,” he said. “This story of representation has been written with blood.”
Prachanda urged lawmakers to study and reflect on the country’s political history and democratic struggles.
“This history was written through revolution,” he said. “It was written by mothers carrying infants on their backs and by people carrying guns on their shoulders.”
During his address, Prachanda also recalled his involvement in the Maoist insurgency, commonly referred to as the “People’s War,” while speaking about the political transformation that led to the current federal democratic republican system.
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