Kathmandu, May 12

Visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met leaders of political parties, including the Nepali Congress, CPN-Maoist Centre, Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal, and Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal.

During his one-on-one meeting with Modi, CPN-Maoist Centre Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal thanked the visiting Indian prime minister for India’s support for the successful holding of local, provincial and parliamentary elections.

According to Dahal’s secretariat, Dahal raised the issues related to inundation in the southern plains, the border issue and the Indian Embassy’s temporary office in Biratnagar. Modi also met Nepali Congress leaders, including party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, senior leader Ramchandra Paudel, general secretaries Shashank Koirala and Purna Bahadur Khadka, Treasurer Sita Devi Yadav, and leaders Bijay Kumar Gachhadar, Prakash Sharan Mahat and Krishna Prasad Sitaula.

During the meeting, Deuba thanked Modi for visiting Nepal, and expressed happiness that the visit was successful, according to a leader present in the meeting.

Modi told the NC leaders that such high-level visits would help in understanding development needs of both countries since development was the common agenda of the two countries.

Members of Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal presidium also met the Indian prime minister and discussed issues of mutual interest. All six members of the RJP-N Presidium Rajendra Mahato, Mahantha Thakur, Sharat Singh Bhandari, Mahendra Ray Yadav, Anil Kumar Jha and Rajkishor Yadav were present in the meeting.

According to Mahato, the RJP-N leaders thanked PM Modi for starting his Nepal visit from Janakpur, saying the residents of Janakpur had waited for long. RJP-N leaders hoped his visit would further strengthen ties between the two countries. They also said their party was unitedly moving to achieve its goals, particularly the empowerment of marginalised communities.

Mahato said the RJP-N leaders expected PM Oli, who had said the constitution could be amended as per the need and rationale, would make efforts to amend the constitution.

According to Mahato, the Indian PM told the RJP-N leaders that there was need to maintain political stability in Nepal and to strengthen the democratic process. “Democracy has solutions to all problems,” Mahato quoted the Indian PM as telling Madhesi leaders.

Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal Chair Upendra Yadav held a one-on-one meeting with the Indian PM. He said he told the Indian PM that Nepal needed India’s help and partnership in its economic development, particularly in the development of agriculture, infrastructure and tourism.

“I told the Indian PM that Nepal and India should focus on finding new ways to forge development partnership,” he added.