Pokhara, September 9:

CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal today said the Maoists announced their struggle programme fearing the Constituent Assembly (CA) election.

Inaugurating the newly constructed office of the Kaski chapter of the CPN-UML, he said: “The Maoists are demanding announcement of republic from the parliament knowing that they will lose many seats in the polls.” Urging the Maoists to take part in the polls, he

said: “The Maoists should not go to the polls and agitation simultaneously.”

Stating that the Maoists have to win the peoples’ hearts, he said: “The Maoists should not be afraid of the people.”

The Maoists’ announcing of their agitation programme is an attempt to grasp power by force, he said. Saying that the delay in holding the CA polls will delay the establishment of republic, he said: “As the eight parties decided to hold the polls on November 22, it could not be deferred again.”

“The Maoists are still following the politics of rightist”, Nepal said. Quoting the Nepali Congress (NC), Nepal said that all the parties should root for a republican agenda in the CA polls. Saying that it is necessary to take ahead the unity of the eight parties as republican unity, he said that it would be easy to abolish monarchy if the eight parties’ unity remains intact.

He pointed out the need for unity among all political forces while forming new constitution after the CA. “People will not favour parties supporting the monarchy in the polls”, he said. Nepal urged parties to go to villages for campaigning the polls.