Kathmandu Post

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‘Maoists falling prey to foreign forces’

ARJUN PAUDEL

KATHMANDU, MAY 30 - Nepali Congress President Sushil Koirala on Wednesday said foreign intervention was one of the factors that led to the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly. He added that the nation could go into a tailspin in the form of “Afganistanisation” given its current cycle of political instability.
In talks with the party’s former lawmakers at the NC’s headquarters in Sanepa on Wednesday, Koirala also vented ire on the Maoists, terming their approach “irresponsible” and said that “the former rebels were falling prey to international power-centres.” He did not elaborate. Koirala told the ex-lawmakers that it was not actually federalism, as claimed by the ruling party leaders, that put a stop to the constitution drafting process on May 27. Rather, it was the Maoists’ intransigence that served as a roadblock to the inter-party talks. “The NC wanted a democratic constitution. The Maoists, on the other hand, were inclined to have an authoritarian constitution,” Koirala claimed. This, he said, resulted in the dissolution of the CA. He said the Bhattarai government will soon give way to a new national unity government, which will declare a fresh date for the CA elections.
Koirala asked the former CA members to go to their home districts and make efforts to consolidate the party base. That an election is very likely to take place and the Congress must strengthen its position was the central thrust in Tuesday’s talks.
“It was basically to boost the party’s morale after the dissolution of the CA and the disenchantment that has followed,” said former NC lawmaker Keshav Kumar Budhathoki.
A few former CA members, instead, demanded that the president first solve disputes in the party. “Only when there is unity within the party do we then get the morale to go to our districts for the next elections,” said former lawmaker Jeep Tsering Lama.
After the talks, the NC held a meeting of its Central Working Committee. The meet dwelt on forms of protest to be launched soon to press PM Baburam Bhattarai to step down.
Leaders concluded that there would be two forms of struggle—constitutional and political.
Posted on: 2012-05-31 08:35

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