The Nepali cabinet this weekend, the government agreed to back a bill including a constitutional amendment that, if ratified by the country’s parliament, would alter the new constitution to satisfy two of the three primary grievances of the protestors. Specifically, the amendment would address proportional representation and federal constituency delimitation issues in the constitution. The political crisis over Nepal’s constitution has been particularly bitter given that the nation is almost evenly split over the appropriateness of the new constitution.

“The bill has ensured proportional inclusive participation in various state organs as demanded by the agitating parties and has also proposed delimitation of the electoral constituencies based on population,” Nepal’s Minister for Industry Som Prasad Pandey told the press, according to the Hindu. He added that a political mechanism “will recommend solutions to disputes over the proposed provincial boundaries within three months of its formation.”

Across the border to the south, in India, the Nepali government’s signaling has been met positively. Vikas Swarup, a spokesperson for the Indian foreign ministry, in a tweet noted that “India welcomes develop’ts in Nepal as positive steps that help create the basis for a resolution of current impasse.” India, given its important interests in Nepal and historic ties, has sought to resolve Nepal’s constitutional crisis. Additionally, due to cross-border ethnic and cultural ties between the Nepalis of the Terai and Indians living along the Nepali border, the current instability, if prolonged, could destabilize the Indian border. The de facto blockade of the border is one symptom of the problems arising for India from the constitutional crisis.

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