Kathmandu, July 19
Nepali Congress leaders on Tuesday called party leadership to learn lessons from the CPN-UML and not to repeat the mistakes that the UML has made.
This comes at a time when the main opposition is making preparations to cobble together a government under the leadership of CPN-Maoist Centre Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’. The Congress said it is but natural to seek to replace a government, while the UML has called the whole process to topple the KP Oli-led government battery-operated, in an oblique reference to alleged Indian role.
Mahesh Acharya, Sujata Koirala, Bal Krishna Khand, NP Saud, Gagan Thapa, Guru Raj Ghimire and Ananda Dhungana, among others, put forth their views at Tuesday’s meeting of the party. Most of the speakers described the NC leadership’s effort to replace the Oli government as ‘natural’.
Most of the speakers, according to a leader, said the CPN-UML, in the capacity of the party heading the Oli government, had failed to live up to its responsibility of implementing the constitution.
They said Prime Minister (KP Oli) had failed to engage Madhesh-centric parties. “We should focus (on engaging Madheshi leaders) from the start. The party has stressed the need to keep talking to Madheshi Morcha (United Democratic Madheshi Front).”
NC leaders also advised the party leadership to continue talks with the UML. “We should focus on bridging the UML closer,” a Congress central committee member said, adding: The UML made mistakes, we should not repeat them.
At the meeting, NC leader Krishna Sitaula, who was a member of the Constitution Drafting Committee, said there’s no confusion in the Constitution regarding the formation of a new government.
“It was the parties, who drafted the Constitution. But they sought help from legal professionals to check what is inside the Charter. This way, they made a laughing stock of themselves,” Sitaula said.
