Koshi Province Assembly put off after opposition’s boycott

            Biratnagar, June 20: The meeting of the Koshi Province Assembly has been put off after the opposition Nepali Congress and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) boycotted it on Wednesday.

            The 10^th meeting under the fifth session of the Assembly was scheduled to deliberate on the appropriation bill as per Rule 125 (4) of the Assembly Regulation, 2074.

            The meeting begun after the slated time failed to enter the business. As Speaker Ambar Bahadur Bista was set to speak, the lawmakers of the major opposition Nepali Congress and of RPP showed objection.

            Gopal Tamang of the Nepali Congress and Sabina Bajgain of the RPP argued that budget did not match the policies and programmes the government brought.

            The budget and plans disheartened them because it was difficult to meet the promises they made before election with this budget. Reasoning it, they boycotted the Province Assembly meeting.

            As the Assembly members except that of the ruling ones left the hall, Speaker Bista postponed the meeting till 3:00pm.

            The scheduled meeting could not begin after the ruling and opposition parties failed to forge consensus.

            The meeting is put off till 11:00 am next day, according to Gopal Prasad Parajuli, Province Assembly Secretary.

            CPN UML chief whip Rewati Raman Bhandari, however, informed that the opposition leaders talked frankly on the issues they disagreed. Few issues were yet to be sorted out, so the meeting was postponed, he added.