Senior Leader of Nepali Congress (NC) Ram Chandra Paudel has met Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) Chairman Mahantha Thakur at the latter's residence in Hattiban to discuss latest political developments.
Paudel, who reached the Thakur residence at around 9:30 Sunday morning, talked with Thakur for around half an hour, according to a source with Paudel's secretariat.
Paudel has met JSP Chairman Thakur after the party's central committee meeting on Friday demanded resignation of Prime Minister (PM) KP Sharma Oli and decided to take initiative to form new government under the party's leadership.
The source added that the two leaders discussed about forging alliance but no agreement could be reached.
Paudel urged Vice-president and NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba's confidant Bimalendra Nidhi to ask Deuba to become PM before the party's central committee meeting at the party office in Sanepa on Friday. "I will talk with Rajendra Mahato and other leaders of JSP. You just convince Deuba to agree to become PM," Paudel quipped when Nidhi pointed that consent of Deuba alone does not matter much as JSP leaders have yet to take a decision, according to an NC source. "The problem is there also due to reluctance of Deuba to become PM, Bimal ji. You should convince him to get ready to become PM."
Puadel stressed that other parties will help once Deuba agrees to become PM.
The central committee meeting held after the exchange between Paudel and Nidhi demanded resignation of PM Oli who on Saturday announced that he will resign if a no-confidence motion is brought against him.
But CPN (Maoist Center) has yet to withdraw support from the Oli government. It has even called off standing committee meeting scheduled for Sunday stating that leaders are outside the Kathmandu Valley.
NC which has 61 seats in the House of Representatives (HoR), Maoist Center (48) and JSP (32) together can muster majority but JSP has yet to take a decision about whether to support Oli or not.
NC Spokesperson Bishwa Prakash Sharma told Setopati that NC is holding informal discussions with Maoist Center and JSP but pointed that there are only political grounds and not arithmetical grounds to form a new government now. "Decisions by Maoist Center and JSP will pave the way for formation of new government," Sharma stated.
Federal Council Chairman of JSP Baburam Bhattarai has welcomed the NC's decision to take initiative to form government by asking Oli's resignation but the party has yet to take an official decision.
Sharma pointed that Oli should pass the floor test if Maoist Center withdraws its support for his government. "NC has entered the arena at the right time. The game doesn't start merely after players stand on the ground. There are issues of participation of other players and processes. Maoist Center and JSP should take decision in an organized manner for that."
