CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli has remarked that the Legislature-Parliament gave its verdict in favour of nationality by rejecting the constitution amendment bill.

Addressing the Legislature-Parliament on Tuesday, Chairman Oli said that House voting on the amendment bill reflected the aspirations of Nepali people, and reached a conclusion in favour of national interests rather than calculating the number of votes in support and against.

He said the healthy participation of all political parties and members of parliament in the constitution amendment process was an honour to democracy and thanked everyone for the same. He made it clear that the lawmakers didn’t vote in support of the bill for they didn’t like it. CPN-UML has been protesting against the amendment bill terming it as being against national interests.

The decision to take the amendment bill for floor test has set a new precedent in Nepali politics. “There was a situation when some of our friends (lawmakers) stayed out of the House, but the situation has changed,” said Oli. “The ownership of constitution has grown now.”

He said it was sad that the opposition party was blamed for failing the amendment bill.

The constitution amendment bill, aimed at addressing the demands of Madhes-based parties, was rejected by the Parliament on Monday, after the ruling alliance failed to ensure 395 votes in the 592-strong Parliament.

In a different context, Oli condemned the government for failing to give momentum to the reconstruction work. He said the government has failed to work to provide relief to the survivors of the devastating earthquakes as they are still living under tarpaulins.