Kathmandu, February 9:

At a time when some of the Madhesi groups are teaming up to intensify their

stir, major political parties have said that the Constituent Assembly elections should not be deferred for the third time.

Addressing an interaction held by the Nepal Tarai Intellectual Society here today, leaders of the political parties urged all to solve the problem of the Madhesis through dialogue.

“It is true that all the demands of Madhesi people have not been met. Even the demands of other stakeholders have not been met. The best thing is to safeguard the attained rights and reserve the right to fight for the rest,” Maoist leader CP Gajurel said.

“If we want everything now, why do we need the CA polls,” Gajurel questioned and warned that if the transition of the country got delayed, chances of nation facing Africa-like prolonged war were high.

A day after Maoist supremo was reported to have said that the army could be deployed as a last resort in the forthcoming polls, Gajurel clarified that his party is against mobilising the army as it could flare up bloodletting.

Leader of the Nepali Congress Man Mohan Bhattarai said since federalism guarantees the identity of all the stakeholders, it is the only best solution for the country.

It will do no harm if there are 50 provinces in the country, provided the country remains one nation, he opined.

CPN-UML leader KP Sharma Oli warned that in case the polls are thwarted, the people’s hard-achieved rights would be lost.

The New Nepal should be built not on the basis of repression but on equal opportunity, he said.

For this also, we need a new constitution and hence the CA elections are necessary, Oli said.

United Leftist Front leader CP Mainali said that the failure to hold the CA elections in time could spell disaster as it could lead to increased violence and activities by the foreign forces.

Federalism is a larger issue, it should be decided through the CA elections only, he said adding that all the regions should be divided in a way that they all have equal natural resources or else those regions might be susceptible to foreign powers.

Janamorcha Nepal leader Amik Sherchan said that feudalism and monarchy, not the other factors, are the greatest enemy of Madhesi people and hence they should not hold the CA elections hostage.

NSP (Anandi Devi) leader Sarita Giri urged the government to resolve the Madhes problem through dialogue but said that Madhesi factions’ demand for right to self-determination is a deviation.

Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (Yadav) leader Nilam Burma said that federalism without the right of self-determination would be meaningless.

Nepal Workers’ and Peasants’ Party leader Sunil Prajapati, citing examples of other countries, said that dialogue is the only option to resolve the problem of Madhes.