CHITWAN, Jan 10: On the eve of the birth anniversary of late King Prithvi Narayan Shah, Prime Minister Pushpa Kamala Dahal on Tuesday highly extolled Shah for his contribution to the unification of Nepal that we have today.
Speaking at a program organized in Chitwan by Bharatpur Sub-Metropolitan City, Dahal said that if Prithvi Narayan Sah had not unified the then fringe kingdoms, Nepal would not have existed.
The Britishers, who were ruing over India back then, would have annexed those smaller kingdoms into their territory, if Shah had not unified them into Nepal.
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“To overlook the role of Shah is to reject the chronological development of the history," said Daha. He further said that if Shah had not taken the initiative in unifying those kingdoms into Nepal, there would be somebody to take up the role.
The unification was the call of the history. Not just because of the presence of British rule in India but also because of the taxation the then people had to pay in every kingdom, the unification was necessary.
Given the British rule in India, if Nepal had not been unified, it would have lost its existence.
However, there is a discourse underway on how to view the role of Shah in the present political context of Nepal when the Madhesis and Adivasi Janajatis are hitting the streets.
Decision on whether to give public holiday on the birth anniversary of Shah will be made only after consultation with the political parties.
