CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal welcomed Pant, chief of the Blue Diamond Society that works for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBTIs) communities, and other members at the function.
Pant said 365 members have already filled up forms for the membership of the party and submitted at the party office on Monday and some more will submit their membership forms in the coming days.[break]
“Other friends from various districts who are on the way to Kathmandu couldn´t arrive today [Monday]. They will submit their forms soon,” Pant told Republica.
He said that they joined the UML hoping that the major party would be able to establish their agendas in the national politics and play decisive role to address their concerns. “We found UML leaders more serious toward our grievances and we thought that we have to join a major party to make our voices heard at the decision making level,” Pant explained.
Pant, who was nominated as member of the dissolved Constituent Assembly (CA) from the CPN (Samyukta), said that they had to quit the small left party as the fringe party couldn´t lobby effectively for their cause.
According to him, the UML leaders have committed to ensure the representation of the third gender in the coming CA. “But we haven´t decided the names and number of representatives from our community,” said Pant.
UML spokesman Pradeep Gyawali said that the new group joined the party as they found UML more sensitive toward the community than other parties.
“One of the reasons is that Pant who was in the dissolved CA closely watched UML leaders´ proposals and commitment in the CA´s committees,” said Gyawali. “He was impressed by our party´s firm commitment in favor of marginalized and various other underprivileged communities.”
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