The Hindu : National : Koirala asks India to cooperate

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Koirala asks India to cooperate

Prerana Marasini

KATHMANDU: The former Prime Minister and Nepali Congress president, Girija Prasad Koirala, has said that India should allow the Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal to go back to their country via India.

Launching a book titled From Palace to Prison, written by Bhutan’s freedom-fighter, Tek Nath Rizal, Mr. Koirala said, “They (the refugees) came to Nepal through India and we let them stay here on humanitarian grounds.”

He further added, “The issue of Bhutanese refugees should be solved together by India, Nepal, and Bhutan.”

In October last, a delegation of Bhutanese refugees had met Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ and submitted signatures of 1,546 families demanding the “right to return” to their homeland.

Of the 1-lakh plus population of Bhutanese refugees sheltered in seven camps across eastern Nepal, nearly 5,000 have been sent to countries such as the U.S. and New Zealand, under the Third Country Resettlement programme launched by International Organisation for Migration.

Indian injured

An Indian national was reportedly injured in a pipe bomb explosion in Rautahat district on Thursday.

Madhesi Mukti Sangram is said to have claimed the responsibility of the explosion. The injured, Nita Anand, is undergoing treatment at Gaur hospital, reports said.

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