UML JANAJATI LEADER GIVES REASON FOR MEET BOYCOTT Kathmandu, 18 June: The dissident faction of the CPN-UML led by Vice-chairman Ashok Rai on Monday floated reasons behind why the faction is boycotting the party’s national cadres’ meeting beginning from today [Monday] in the capital, RSS reports. UML leaders belonging to Janajati and Madhesi communities are pushing for identity-based federalism for long. Issuing a press statement today, Vice-chairman Rai said that the party failed to draw a conclusion by holding bilateral discussions on the nine-point demand tabled by them as ‘Our Opinion Regarding Present Context’ after the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly (CA). Rai has demanded that the nine-point issues put forth by the leaders of the Janajati and Madhesi background formally be tabled in the party’s national gathering. Similarly, Rai has asked the party leadership to withdraw the party standing committee’s decision to expel Ang Kaji Sherpa, deputy-secretary of the party’s Solukhumbu district committee, from the party’s membership. “If our concerns are not addressed, we will boycott party’s national gathering and other future programmes and meetings,” the statement further states. nnnn MAOISTS ACCUSED OF ’BUTCHERING’ CA BY RPP Kathmandu, 17 June: Chairman of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Pashupati Shumsher JB Rana has accused Prime Minister Dr. Baburam Bhattarai of butchering the Constituent Assembly (CA), RSS reports. At a face-to-face programme organised here today, Rana said the PM who is caretaker after the CA's demise, should not go to international conferences. He said the country was in crisis and his party would not allow the Maoist strategy of holding election under their leadership by mobilising combatants to be successful. Chairman Rana said the government should give an outlet without lengthening their stay in power and therefore, should resign and pave way for a new government. Nnnn HIGH FAILURE IN SLC; REASONS SOUGHT Kathmandu, 18 June: After the news of the sixth amendment to the Education Regulations-2011 was announced, students were probably jubilant, RSS reports. The sent-up exams were no longer the dreaded pit a student had to fly past before the SLC exams. But now after the SLC results have been declared, many people are not happy with the turn up rate. With the elimination of the sent-up exams, shouldn’t there have been more eager students? What was the cause? Was it the absence of the sent-up exams? Many people share their opinion in our Facebook page. Maniche Dahal states his agreement in a word, “Yes.” In the same vein, Rosan Nepal further explains, “In my opinion, not only was it a reason but a major one. I was teaching in a government school at that time and I could see students skipping the SLC examinations. There was nothing we could do to stop them from skipping the tests. I firmly believe that if the sent-up exams were compulsory and if schools were allowed to fail some students in that exam, the result would surely have been better.” nnnn