Kathmandu, April 29

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has called an all-party meeting tomorrow morning to discuss Madhes movement, reconstruction and budgetary issues.

Constituents of the United Democratic Madhesi Front, which has been agitating against the ‘discriminatory provisions of the constitution’, however, said they would not attend tomorrow’s all-party meeting because it was not the right way to find solution to Madhes movement.

Laxman Lal Karna, co-chair of Sadbhawna Party, a constituent of UDMF and Federal Alliance, said the constituents of the Federal Alliance would not attend the all-party meeting.

He said if the prime minister was serious about finding negotiated settlement of Madhes problems, he should have first talked to the agitating forces and should have discussed their demands.

"The prime minister has called this meeting to prolong his rule. All-party meeting cannot resolve Madhes problems,” Karna said.

Mahendra Ray Yadav, chairperson of Tarai Madhes Sadbhawana Party-Nepal, also a constituent of UDMF and Federal Alliance agreed with Karna. Yadav said the PM should have consulted the agitating forces before calling the meeting. “This is merely an attempt to prolong the rule of his government.

This is just a farce. I am not going to attend the meeting and I don’t think any constituent of Federal Alliance would attend the meeting either,” he said.

Chairperson of Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum-Republican Rajkishor Yadav said although the PM called an all-party meeting to find solution to the Madhes movement, he did not believe that the PM would make sincere efforts towards that end.

“The wall of pseudo nationalism that he has created around himself, would not allow him to resolve Madhes problems,” he added.

PM’s Personal Secretary Ramesh Acharya said he, on behalf of the prime minister, sent invites to all the political parties represented in the Parliament requesting their participation in a meeting scheduled for at 9:00am tomorrow.

According to PM’s Press Adviser Pramod Dahal, the PM was likely to urge all the political parties to send volunteers, along with engineers deployed by the government, to help assist reconstruction in the earthquake-affected districts.

Dahal said the PM believed that if all the parties sent volunteers to earthquake-hit districts along with the engineers that would help accelerate reconstruction works.

The PM will also discuss budgetary issues, including government’s policies and programmes, with the political leaders.

The President has called the budget session on May 3.