Nepali Congress is considering leading the consensus government to be formed as per a three-week-old agreement among major political parties.
Senior Congress leader Kul Bahadur Gurung said he had received information that Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, who heads the present CPN (UML)-led government of which Nepali Congress is a part, was going to resign by Friday. “We would first try to form a consensus government, if not we'll go for a majority government,” he added.
The Nepali Congress' move comes at a time when the main opposition UCPN (Maoist), which has been demanding formation of a consensus government under its leadership, is facing internal conflict. A faction among the top leaders wants to join the government — be it by consensus or majority — while others do not want to be a part of it.
There are differences on the selection of a prime ministerial candidate also. Though party spokesperson Dina Nath Sharma on Thursday said the party would abide by its earlier decision to let its chairman, Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”, lead the government, there are other leaders backing vice-chairman Baburam Bhattarai.
Meanwhile, Mr. Prachanda said political parties have not been able to forge consensus as the “decision-making authority resides elsewhere”, suggesting foreign interference. “If the authority to make decisions reside in the three parties, consensus can be forged soon,” he said on Thursday.
