KATHMANDU, April 4: A day after she was caught on camera shouting “anti-national slogan”, former minister and Naya Shakti Nepal (NSN) leader Hisila Yami delivered a public apology on Monday, stating she chanted the slogan in “a fit of rage and in a semi-focused state”, and that she did not mean it.
While protesting against “police suppression of a peaceful demonstration” staged by five parties, including the NSN, against the Election Commission on Sunday, Yami was heard shouting: “dissolve this state”.
Hisila Yami ‘sorry’ for anti-national slogan
Thousands of people took to the social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter to denounce Yami’s remarks, stating she made direct attack on “national unity and integrity”.
In a statement issued on Monday, Yami said she did not mean “what erroneously came out of her mouth”. She said she was actually demanding “scrapping of the newly-adopted Local Level Election Act (LLEA), 2017”.
“I was really furious and in a semi-focused state. In a fit of rage, I started chanting the slogan. Though I was trying to say ‘this order’ should be scrapped, I ended up saying something else,” said Yami.
Besides, Yami blamed her lack of proficiency in Nepali language for the mistake. “As a daughter of Janajati, I don’t have command over the Nepali language,” she said.
Naya Shakti Nepal has been protesting against the Election Commission’s decision not to give election symbol to parties not having representation in the legislature parliament in line with the Local Level Election Act (LLEA), 2017.
The NSN lacks representation in the parliament.
Meanwhile on Monday, the NSN and four other parties protested against the act, which, according to them, contradicts the spirit of the constitution. According to the act, if political parties are to contest the local polls slated for May 14 under their respective symbols, they must have representation in the legislature parliament.
