Sushil Koirala renews calls to Nepal Opposition for talks over Constitution

KATHMANDU: Nepal Prime Minister Sushil Koirala today renewed his call to the agitating Opposition for a dialogue to resolve the current political deadlock over the Constitution drafting process.

He said the government is committed to draft the Constitution through cooperation, collaboration and unity among the political parties.

Once the constitution is drafted, the door for economic prosperity will open for the country, Koirala said at a function to mark the birth centenary of great democratic leader Ganesh Man Singh, who had led the peoples movement of 1990 that restored multiparty democracy in Nepal.

"What is important for Nepal is drafting a new constitution at the earliest possible time," he pointed out.

CPN-UML chairman KP Sharma Oli said if consensus is not possible, the ruling alliances is committed to draft the constitution through two third majority votes.

Koirala also alleged the Maoists to trying to obstruct the process of rafting the constitution in the name of consensus.

Earlier on February 8, the premier had called opposition parties, who have been boycotting the Constituent Assembly (CA) procedures, for talks, which they denied claiming Koirala failed to express his commitment for consensus-based constitution.

The ruling and opposition parties are sharply divided on key issues in the Constitution drafting including federal structure and forms of governance.

Opposition parties' also demand ethnic identity-based federal structure in the new Constitution which was initially supposed to be promulgated by January 22.