Head home ministry yourself: UML third front to PM

KATHMANDU, Feb 21: Leaders from a group, which is touted as the third-front in the ruling CPN-UML, have suggested to the newly-elected Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal to keep the home portfolio himself until the row with UCPN (Maoist) over power-sharing is settled.

The proposal from the group that commands 16 of the total 39 politburo members and other central committee (CC) leaders in the prime minister´s party has come a day before the politburo meeting. UML has also called its CC meeting starting Tuesday.

“We suggested to the prime minister to expand his cabinet by keeping the home portfolio with himself for a few months,” Mukunda Neupane told Republica. Neupane and Pradip Nepal, who are leading figures in the third-front, met the prime minister at the latter´s official residence in Baluwatar on Sunday evening. They suggested to the prime minister to look after security-related ministries as long as the key issues related to Maoist´s arms and armies are settled amicably.

Neupane and Nepal met Khanal after holding a meeting of the third-front in the afternoon. Neupane, Nepal, Rajendra Pandey, Beduram Bhusal, Prithivi Subba Gurung, Pashupati Chaulagain, Mahendra Pandey and Urmila Aryal were among those present at the meeting.

The prime minister has failed to give full shape to his three-member cabinet as Maoists refused to join the cabinet for not being given the home portfolio.

While Khanal and his aides are for allowing the Maoists to head the home ministry, his rival faction in the party led by former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and KP Oli are dead set against the idea.

The meeting of the group, which is comprises moderates in the party, also pledged to stop the two rival factions from going for a vote to settle the disputes. “We came up with the understanding as such a move would push the party to the brink of vertical division,” said Gurung, a participant of the meeting.

Neupane also said that they would urge the party leaders to “focus on how to move ahead instead of unnecessarily politicizing the seven-point deal”.

But the rival [Khanal and Nepal-Oli] factions are prepared to present arguments and counterarguments for and against the controversial seven-point deal at the politburo and CC meetings.

While Khanal camp has claimed that the seven-point deal shouldn´t be a big issue in the meeting as the prime minister and Maoist Chairman Dahal had already clarified some of the confusions over the deal, Nepal-Oli faction is fervently against it.

“There is no point in raising the issue as both the chairmen have already clarified confusions over the deal,” said UML leader Prakash Jwala, who is close to Khanal. He said that the issue of procedural mistakes too is no longer a relevant agenda for the meeting.

But leaders from Nepal-Oli camp rule out any compromise on the issues. Krishna Gopal Shrestha said they will strongly stand against the controversial seven-point deal and the proposal to give the home portfolio to the Maoists. “We will object the agreement in which our chairman has agreed to work as per the Maoist agenda,” Shrestha said.

Another leader Khagraj Adhikari said they can´t support the agreement. “Among others, the agreement to form a separate security force of Maoist combatants is objectionable,” he said. Adhikari claimed that the UML can´t be an accomplice to the Maoists´ bid to capture the state.

However, sources said leaders close to Khanal are planning to counter the argument saying former Prime Minister Nepal had already floated the same proposal during talks among the top leaders from the Nepali Congress, the UML and the Maoists at Gokarna Resort.

http://www.myrepublica.com/portal/index.php?action=news_details&news_id=28469