Kathmandu, Sept 19: Former President Bidya Devi Bhandari has said the constitution has made Nepali people empowered to protect the country’s independence, sovereignty, geographical integrity, national unity and self-respect.

It has also ended all types of discrimination and oppression as well as bounded the Nepali society having linguistic, religious, cultural and geographical diversity to the formula of comprehensive national unity, she shared. In a message on the occasion of Constitution Day today, former President Bhandari underlined that the Constitution has become a historic achievement in itself from the women’s participation in all state bodies to maintain gender equality, incorporating social and geographical diversity and guaranteeing fundamental rights.

She emphasized the need to build a strong and self-reliant national economy to establish equal access of all citizens to services and facilities of the state by implementing the fundamental rights guaranteed by the constitution and to develop a socialism-oriented economy to build an equitable society based on social justice. Former President Bhandari extended best wishes to all Nepalis at home and abroad on the occasion of Constitution Day, extending heartfelt tribute to martyrs who lost their lives in different movements held to establish a federal democratic republic. —RSS