Senior Leader of Nepali Congress (NC) Ram Chandra Paudel has said Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) Chairman Mahantha Thakur is positive about allying with NC to form new government.
The main opposition NC demanded resignation of Prime Minister (PM) KP Sharma Oli and decided to take initiative to form new government on Friday. But NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba still seems reluctant to start the initiative in earnest and Paudel seems to be laying the groundwork instead.
Paudel had urged Vice-president and Deuba's confidant Bimalendra Nidhi to ask Deuba to become PM and assured to talk with JSP if Deuba agrees to become PM before the party's central committee meeting at the party office in Sanepa on Friday. But Deuba still does not believe that the whole of JSP will vote for him and, therefore, is focused more on the party's general convention than becoming PM.
Paudel, who was instrumental in getting the central committee meeting take the decision on Friday, said the meeting with Thakur was positive and agreement can be reached if Deuba were to sit and negotiate with him.
In a brief interview with Setopati after his meeting with Thakur, Paudel said he has already briefed Deuba about the meeting and urged him to reach agreement with JSP.
Paudel claimed that JSP does not have unfulfillable demands and refuted reports that Thakur staked claims of JSP for the post of PM. "He did not raise the demand of PM. He pointed that leaders of his party are facing cases and demanded their withdrawal. He did not raise big agenda," Paudel added.
He stressed that the demands of JSP can be met pointing that if Oli can meet the demands there is no way that NC cannot meet them.
