Nepalmountainnews Report | 24 Jul 2008
Students take on streets in the capital other parts of the country demonstrating against Vice President Parmananda Jha for taking the oath of office and secrecy in the Hindi language during the President and Vice-Presidential swearing in ceremony at Shital Niwas Wednesday.
Student organisations affiliated with different parties blamed Vice President Jha taking the oath of office in a "Indian language".
Stating the Vice President (left in the photo) who represents the whole county ignored the national language and took the oath in the Indian language, the irate students have been protesting since last evening. They also have brunt effigy of Jha. 
The students have also demanded that VP Jha publicly apologise for this.
Reports say, in Chitwan district today, eight students’ unions have blocked Narayangadh road segment of the East-West Highway and also closed down the market places.
Likewise, Chure Bhawar Ekata Samaj, a party which claims to work for the people of hilly origin living in the Terai, also obstructed traffic for more than an hour in the East-West highway passing through Saptari district.
The transportation strike had caused a long traffic snarl in the highway, causing a great problem for passengers.
In Butwal also local youths chanted slogans against the newly elected VP and blocked traffic in the major roads and intersections. There were reports of protests in Makwanpur, Rupandehi, Nawalparasi, Dadelhura and Tahahun also.
President Dr Ram Baran Yadav, clad in the national custom, had taken the oath of office and secrecy in Nepali. However, when he administered the oath of office to his deputy Jha, who was clad in a dress many identify with Indian parliamentarians, the latter preferred to take it in Hindi, raising eyebrows among the high-level dignitaries and political leaders present there.
According to an independent statistics, only 0.05 percent of people living in Terai speak Hindi. The majority of the people there speak Bhojpuri, Maithali, Avadhi and other local dialects. However, Madhesi leaders prefer to mostly speak in Hindi during the parliamentary proceedings saying that it is a "lingua franca" in Terai.
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