KATHMANDU: The Constitution Amendment Task Force, formed under Asim Shah—political advisor to Prime Minister Balendra Shah—has initiated separate high-level consultations with former Presidents Dr. Ram Baran Yadav and Bidya Devi Bhandari to gather feedback for a comprehensive constitutional amendment discussion paper.

Former President Yadav emphasized the preservation of Nepal’s core constitutional pillars—federalism, democracy, republicanism, secularism, and proportional inclusivity—while recommending that the task force take adequate time to secure broad national consensus, preferably an all-party or two-thirds legislative agreement.

He stressed that the text must prioritize marginalized citizens like laborers, farmers, and the landless, and urged utilizing global democratic best practices to reinforce the parliamentary framework.

Meanwhile, former President Bhandari lauded the initiative spearheaded by the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and advocated for structural reforms, including assigning dedicated direct-election seats for women to curb the misuse of the proportional representation system.

Furthermore, Bhandari argued against the politically motivated recalling of legally appointed ambassadors during government transitions and recommended a rigorous ten-year performance review of newly established constitutional commissions.

Following these consultations, the task force plans to meet with former prime ministers to collect further suggestions.