"We'll certainly go to India. The ruling party leaders have been visiting India time and again to misinform the Indian leaders. We are planning to visit India to inform them about the actual situation in Nepal," said Sadbhavana Party Chairman Rajendra Mahato.
Mahato said that leaders in the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) are discussing about the visit. "We are still planning. We can fly to New Delhi on Saturday or Sunday," he said.
A leader of Federal Socialist Forum Nepal (FSFN) said that the Madhesi leaders are all set to fly to New Delhi on Sunday.
Meanwhile, various leaders from the Madhes-based parties held a meeting at the Indian embassy in Kathmandu, reportedly with a view to discussing ongoing crisis and the Delhi visit. According to a senior Madhesi leader, the leaders were yet to come out of the meeting as of late evening.
Meanwhile, former prime minister Baburam Bhattarai, Tarai-Madhes Democratic Party Vice-chairman Hridayesh Tripathi and Nepali Congress leader Minendra Rijal are currently in India.
When the ruling coalition and main opposition Nepali Congress were in talks to move forward the constitution amendment bill that addresses the demands for population based delimitation of electoral constituencies and provisions on proportional inclusion as well as to settle the issue of provincial delineations within three months through a political committee, the agitating leaders failed to attend the talks.
"We did not like the attitude of the government. On the one side, the government was using bullets to suppress a peaceful mass meeting in Sarlahi. On the other, they are urging us to sit for talks," said Jeetendra Sonal, general secretary of Tarai Madhes Democratic Party (TMDP).
"How could the government ask us to sit at the negotiations table while firing bullets at our cadres on the ground?" asked Sadbhavana Chairman Mahato. "People involved in protests are suffering and people from other regions of the countries are also suffering. However, the government has failed to understand these facts and the major parties are not serious about resolving the issue," he added.
UDMF has been leading the agitations in Madhes since the last 111 days, demanding changes in provincial delineations, constitutional assurances of proportional representation in state mechanisms and delimitation of electoral constituencies on the basis of population. UDMF has been protesting on the highways and at border checkpoints and India has been obstructing imports into the landlocked country, citing the agitations at border checkpoints.
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