Saran to 'get back' to Maoists

KATHMANDU, Aug 13: Shyam Saran, who recently visited Nepal as a special envoy of the Indian government, is getting back to the Maoist leadership after reporting to Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and Congress-I President Sonia Gandhi about his talks with top Nepali leaders during the visit.

"Saran said he will get back to us with the response of Sonia Gandhi and Indian Prime Minister Singh regarding our views which we put forth during talks with him," a politburo member of UCPN (Maoist) quoted party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal as saying during a central committee meeting held at the party head office in Kathmandu Thursday.

According to him, Saran had suggested to the Maoist leaders to join the mainstream politics of the country while the Maoists replied that they were not ready to opt for that without effecting changes in the conventional politics of the country.

"Being such a massive political force, you [Maoists] should join the mainstream politics of the country. Sometimes it seems that you are not [headed] in that direction," Dahal quoted Saran as saying. "But we told him that we are not going to join conventional mainstream politics, but rather the Nepali Congress (NC) and CPN-UML should agree to the new mainstream political system that we have established," Dahal told CC members as replying to the Indian envoy. According to him, Saran finally pledged to communicate to the Maoist leaders about the response of the top Indian leadership including Gandhi and Singh. The Maoist chairman informed his comrades that they held talks with Saran as he was one of those involved while forging several political deals including the 12-point agreement.

During the over hour-long briefing to CC members he mainly focused on the initiatives taken by the party in government formation, inter-party dialogues and talks with the special envoy of the Indian government.

Maoists ready to withdraw PM candidacy if NC does so too

The Maoist leaders said that the party was ready to withdraw its prime ministerial candidacy if the NC also agreed to do so.

“We are always in favor of forming a national consensus government,” Maoist Vice-chairman Narayan Kaji Shrestha told reporters after a meeting with UML leaders at Singha Durbar. “We are ready to hold open discussions on the option of withdrawing candidacy.”

UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal said they urged the Maoists to pull out of the race that has yielded no result even after holding four rounds of voting. "We requested them to stop this series of votings and pave the way for the formation of a national consensus government," Khanal said.

According to him, UML leaders will now try to convince NC leaders over the option as the Maoist leadership is positive towards it. Dahal and NC Vice-president Ram Chandra Poudel are in the race for prime minister.

Dahal led the Maoist team and Khanal led the UML leaders during the bilateral meeting.

Bhattarai met Saran through consent: Dahal

Dahal at the CC meeting tried to douse the controversy surrounding party Vice-chairman Dr. Baburam Bhattarai´s separate meeting with Saran, telling the CC members that Bhattarai had his consent.

"Whatever we have heard in public holds no meaning as whichever among us -- Dahal or Bhattarai -- held meetings with the Indian envoy, did so as per consultations and decisions taken," the politburo member quoted Dahal as saying.

A serious controversy had suddenly flared up after Maoist secretariat member Barsa Man Pun and other leaders criticized Bhattarai for holding a separate meeting with Saran. Bhattarai and leaders loyal to him had strongly reacted against that.

Source: http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=22162