KATHMANDU, AUGUST 2

Co-chairpersons of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Pushpa Kamal Dahal and KP Sharma Oli resumed dialogue today after almost a week in an attempt to end the stalemate between rival factions in the party. Dahal went to hold talks with Oli along with senior party leader Jhalanath Khanal. Deputy parliamentary party leader of the NCP Subas Chandra Nembang, who is close to Oli, was also present in the meeting.

The NCP faction led by Dahal and senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has asked the PM to quit either as prime minister or party co-chair. However, Oli has refused to quit any of the two posts. Nembang said talks between the two co-chairs were cordial. "There was no heated exchange between the two today unlike in some of the previous meetings. Both chairpersons agreed that there was no alternative to a negotiated settlement between them.

Talks between the two will continue tomorrow, " he said, adding that the resumption of dialogue had bridged the communication gap between them.

He said the two co-chairs discussed repeated postponement of the Standing Committee and a meeting of the Standing Committee convened by Dahal.

When asked when the party's next Standing Committee meeting would be held, NCP Spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha said both sides stuck to their stances and there was no agreement between them today.

A version of this article appears in e-paper on August 3, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.