Nepalese Madhesi leader vows close ties with India

Head of one of Nepal's Madhesi parties today said he is keen to maintain a special relationship with India and make Hindi an official language.
"Our party favours special relationship with India, as we have unique and special ties with India, determined by the open border. We share common soil, water and air," President of Sadbhawana Party Rajendra Mahato said, while unveiling the manifesto for the November 19 Constituent Assembly elections.
"No two countries in the world are so closely linked like Nepal and India. Our relationships are also governed by bread and daughter - Roti and Beti," he said.

Mahato said that his party wants to recognise Hindi as the second national language, allowing it to be used in government offices.
He claimed that new constitution which will be framed through the Constituent Assembly elections in Nepal will institutionalise a federal, democratic and republican system.
Though King Prithvi Narayan Shah unified the smaller states into a larger country some two and a half century ago, the country is yet to be unified from their heart, he said.
Such a true unification is possible only after the country is divided into various federal units, guaranteeing rights and representation of the marginalised communities, including the Madhesi people, Mahato said.

"Our party will fight for the upliftment of these marginalised communities. Framing a federal structure by drafting the constitution is the only way to unite all the Nepalese people, whether they are living in the Terai plains, hilly region or the mountain region in a true sense," Mahato said.