Deadlock on amendment bill to continue

  • Serious talks to end stalemate yet to be held

Kathmandu, January 18

The deadlock over the constitution amendment bill is likely to persist for sometime, as the ruling and opposition parties are yet to hold serious talks on the issue.

Nine opposition parties led by the CPN-UML have been stalling House proceedings to protest the constitution amendment bill registered by the government on November 29.

Speaker Onsari Gharti Magar has scheduled a meeting of the Parliament on Friday, hoping that the parties will utilise the six-day recess to iron out their differences.

Deputy Parliamentary Party leader of CPN-UML Subas Chandra Nembang claimed that the government did not make any effort to win the confidence of his party in the last week. “Today at a social function, I jokingly asked Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal whether he would again embark on a foreign trip. He said he would hold serious talks with all the stakeholders,” Nembang said.

The PM returned yesterday from a trip to the United Arab Emirates where he attended an international energy summit.

Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and CPN-UML Chair KP Sharma Oli are also not in the capital and Oli is unlikely to return to the capital before Saturday.

UML Chief Whip Bhanu Bhakta Dhakal said his party would support the ruling coalition only on election-related matters. He said his party would protest if the government proceeded with the constitution amendment bill but declined to reveal the nature of protest. The bill was tabled in the House on January 8 amid protest by the

opposition.

Speaker Magar’s Press Adviser Babin Sharma said, “The speaker believes that the parties can forge consensus before the bill is put to vote in the House. There are ways to amend the bill. Lawmakers seeking amendment can register amendment proposals before the bill is put to vote,” Sharma added.

He said the speaker would consult top leaders before deciding how to proceed with the bill in the next

meeting.

If the speaker wants, she can list the bill for debate in the House anytime.

Minister of Physical Infrastructure and Transport Ramesh Lekhak told THT that the government wanted to hold civic polls and hoped that the UML would end obstruction of the House.

Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Ajaya Shankar Nayak said the government was making efforts to end the deadlock. “The government hopes to find a way out before Friday,” he added.