KATHMANDU, April 22: CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli and senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal are holding talks again on Thursday afternoon in a bid to save the party’s unity.
Sources close to Prime Minister Oli said the two leaders are scheduled to hold a one-on-one to resolve their differences. The meeting is scheduled to begin at 2PM at Hotel Marriott in Nagpokhari in the capital.
EPG's first meeting begins today in Kathmandu
After a months-long hiatus, Chairman Oli and senior leader Nepal met on Wednesday to resolve their differences. The meeting took place a day after Chairman Oli sought clarifications from 27 lawmakers of the federal parliament and five lawmakers from Karnali Province with an intention to sack them from the position of lawmaker. All these lawmakers are close to UML’s Nepal-led faction.
Although the meeting between Oli and Nepal on Wednesday is said to have ended on a positive note, none of the two sides has revealed what transpired in the meeting. Sources said Oli asked Nepal to return to the party and carry out party activities as usual. He, however, reiterated his stance that he is not in favor of dealing with leaders “on the basis of a factional group”.
Nepal reportedly sought time to discuss with the leaders close to him before giving his decision. Accordingly, Nepal had called a meeting to hold discussion on Oli’s proposal with the party leaders close to him earlier on Thursday. A section of leaders close to Nepal have argued that they should not compromise with Oli unless he revokes his unilateral decision to induct former Maoist leaders as the party’s central committee members and strip off the party responsibility of leaders close to senior leader Nepal.
Addressing a function organized to lay the foundation stone of the party’s new building in Balkhu earlier on Thursday, Chairman Oli said they had been asking a section of leaders within the party not to get involved in factional activities. He also asked them not to consider their request as a weakness, hinting that the party is bent on taking action against those involved in such activities.
“The party should be disciplined. We cannot compromise with leaders not adhering to the party’s discipline. We will no longer recognize the factional activities in the party,” he said.
