Kathmandu, March 25
The Netra Bikram Chand-led Nepal Communist Party, whose activities have been banned by the government following a spate of violent activities around the country, has set its precondition for talks with authorities.
The splinter Maoist group has demanded that Prime Minister Oli and Minister for Home Affairs Ram Bahadur Thapa step down to create an atmosphere of talks.
“We have never been against the idea of talks,”the group’s Eastern Command chief Anil Sharma told Onlinekhabar. “Our precondition of talks is that Oli and Badal (Thapa) must step down,” he added. Sharma, who remains underground, accused the Prime Minister and his deputy of being reluctant to hold talks.
“The government never made formal and responsible efforts to hold talks. I could have sought the help of mediapersons, rights activists, lawyers, and civil society members. But it did not think doing so was necessary. All it did was talk to the youngest members of our group to demand that we surrender,” Sharma added.
He warned that the “people would be forced to resort to self-defense if incidents such as the ones in Kapilvastu, Kavre, Rolpa, Morang, and Ilam were repeated.”
Sharma’s statement comes hours after Prime Minster Oli issued an ultimatum to the group saying that if it does not join peaceful politics, all its leaders will be arrested within a week.
