Representatives of various political parties, student unions and civil society groups on Tuesday formed a broad alliance, expressing solidarity with the demands raised by Govinda KC.
KC, an orthopaedic surgeon at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, has been on an indefinite hunger strike for the last 10 days, demanding that the Medical Education Bill be passed after the major points of the report prepared by the Mathema Committee are incorporated. He also seeks the impeachment of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) Chair Lokman Singh Karki for 'interfering in the medical education sector by overstepping his jurisdiction'.
The alliance considers KC's demands as reflecting a popular agenda, and will take all possible measures in order to put additional pressure on the government to address the demands. The alliance is holding a protest rally in Kathmandu this Saturday.
Former Prime Minister and Naya Shakti Party's President Baburam Bhattarai has joined the alliance, which is led by Jiban Chhetri, one of KC's confidants. However, leaders of the major political parties are not participating in it. In a statement on Tuesday, Chhetri said anyone who supports KC's demands could join the alliance.