Prime Minister and CPN Chairman (PM) KP Sharma Oli and fellow Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal have expressed commitment to pass the citizenship bill from the current session of the parliament.
The two leaders expressed commitment to reach conclusion within a few days after holding discussion during a meeting of CPN leaders on Friday, according to Chairperson of the State Affairs Committee of parliament Shashi Shrestha. "I have told the leadership that the citizenship bill should not be stuck for long," she stated. "There are lots of problems now as the citizenship bill has not moved forward. This should, therefore, be decided by the current session."
CPN General Secretary Bishnu Paudel, Deputy Parliamentary Party Leader Subash Chandra Nembang, Chief Whip Dev Gurung and Shrestha were also present during Friday's meeting.
The party will take a decision on the bill through its secretariat. "The two chairmen have called secretariat meeting to discuss the bill. It will probably be held on Saturday," a leader who attended the meeting said.
The two chairmen and other leaders on Thursday had discussed the bill with Nepali Congress (NC) leaders.
The bill is under consideration in the State Affairs Committee of the parliament since August 21, 2018. The committee has yet to reach consensus on providing naturalized citizenship to those marrying a Nepali citizen.
The State Affairs Committee on Wednesday had instructed the government to forge consensus on the citizenship bill within five days.
The committee last discussed on the proposal to provide citizenship to any woman marrying a Nepali man only seven years after marriage.
