The significance of Terai and what they want

This article appeared on Bloomberg.com.

Nepal’s Terai Ethnic Groups Vow to Delay Government Formation

By Jay Shankar

July 1 (Bloomberg) — Nepal’s ethnic groups seeking autonomy in the southern Terai region bordering India said they will continue to disrupt parliament and delay the formation of a new government unless their demands are met.

Members of the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, which is the fourth-largest party in the assembly, and other ethnic groups have disrupted proceedings for four straight sittings by chanting slogans, preventing a vote on a new administration.

“We are demanding a Madhesi province within the territorial state of Nepal with autonomous powers,” Upendra Yadav, president of the party, said in a telephone interview from the capital, Kathmandu, yesterday.