Informal Sector Service Centre (INSEC) and the National Human Rights Commission, Madhes Province, monitored the sit-in protest of Ward Chairperson Saroj Kumar Yadav of Sabaila Municipality-11 at the Sabaila Municipality office on Feburary 24,2025.
Ward Chairperson Saroj Kumar Yadav of Sabaila Municipality-11 stated that he had submitted a written request to the municipality on May 3, 2024 and informed the mayor about his demands. These included filling the vacant position of computer operator at the ward office, ensuring that social security allowances for senior citizens in the ward are distributed through the ward office, allocating teachers based on student numbers, deploying sanitation workers and tractors in each ward for waste management, and distributing national identity cards from ward offices. However, as no action was taken on these demands, he has been continuously staging a sit-in protest since February 10. He also stated that he will continue the peaceful protest until the demands are met.
In this context, Sabaila Municipality’s Chief Administrative Officer, Sabir Kumar Mahato, informed that Mayor Kaliram Yadav was in Kathmandu for personal reasons, and the Deputy Mayor was not present at the office.
During the monitoring, Chief Administrative Officer Mahato stated that social security allowances for senior citizens were being distributed through three banks and acknowledged the difficulties faced by elderly and disabled individuals in receiving their allowances. He mentioned that this issue was not limited to Sabaila Municipality but was a nationwide problem. Regarding Ward Chairperson Yadav’s demands, Mahato stated that he was not aware of them and suggested seeking clarification from Mayor Kaliram Yadav.
Similarly, Yubaraj Kafle, Chief of the Education Division of Sabaila Municipality, stated that there was no confirmed data on vacant teaching positions in schools. He mentioned, “I joined a month ago and have been handling the duty for only two days. Additionally, most schools in the municipality have not yet formed management committees.”
A joint team comprising Buddhanarayan Sahani, Chief of the National Human Rights Commission, Madhesh Province Office; Raju Paswan, Coordinator of INSEC Madhesh Province; Human Rights Officer Rahul Thakur; and INSEC Dhanusha Representative Santosh Kumar Yadav conducted the monitoring.