KATHMANDU, JUL 29 - Barring some last-minute surprises, it is almost certain that UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Nepali Congress (NC) Parliamentary Party leader Ram Chandra Poudel will set an unenviable record on Aug. 2: Theirs will be a hat-trick of defeat in the prime ministerial poll.

The drama began on July 21. Both failed to secure 300 votes to form a majority government and ended up doing so again on July 23. Two decisive forces who will tilt the vote one way or the other—CPN-UML and the Samyukta Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha (SLMM)—are likely to abstain on Monday, according to insiders.

The vote of UML and SLMM is a must for Poudel to form a majority government while 82 votes of SLMM would take Dahal to the hot seat. Both UML and SLMM had not voted for the two contestants in the previous two elections. 

UML has been a deeply divided house after its Chairman Jhala Nath Khanal had to withdraw his candidacy in the first round election. Khanal wants both Dahal and Poudel to withdraw to prepare ground for a national unity government while his bete noire KP Oli, alongside Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, want the continuation of a “democratic alliance” under the NC leadership.

“The party will not rollback its stand to stay neutral in the upcoming poll,” said UML Secretary Yuvaraj Gyawali. According to him, the party’s central committee will not take any new decision before Aug. 2 election.

While they continue to court the SLMM, the Maoist party and NC have so far failed to get the backing of the Madhesi front. “We will not vote for any candidate unless they agree to go for a single Madhes province,” said Madhesi Janadhikar Forum Chairman Upendra Yadav. Both the Maoist party and NC are in favour of multiple autonomous provinces in Madhes.

Both the parties have expressed their reservation over the front’s demand for bulk entry of Madhesis in the Nepal Army. The Maoists have stated that they won’t accept pluralism in the new constitution while NC has opposed the condition for scrapping the formation of the high level state restructuring commission floated by the four Madhes-based parties.

Posted on: 2010-07-29 08:46

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