Kathmandu April 7

CPN-Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal told the CPN-UML Chair and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli that 50 per cent representation of the CPN-MC  in the top committees of the unified party was his bottomline.

According to a senior CPN-MC leader, Dahal also told PM Oli there should be provisions whereby the two chairpersons should sign each and every decision of the unified party to reflect the equal status of both leaders. Both parties have agreed that Dahal and Oli will be chairpersons of the unified party.

CPN-MC leaders said they would not accept any arrangement that could make one chairperson the executive leader and another just a ceremonial chair.

Although UML and CPN-MC leaders have said the two  parties would unite on April 22, they have not sorted out three key issues relating to election symbol, mention of ‘people’s war in the preamble of the party statute and the percentage of the two parties in the unified party’s structures.

According to a senior CPN-MC leader, on March 27, Dahal told Prime Minister Oli that 50 per cent representation of the CPN-MC in the unified party’s top committees was his party’s bottom-line. PM Oli, however, did not respond.

Referring to the precedent of unification between CPN-Marxist and CPN-ML in 1990 on the basis of equal representation, Dahal told his party leaders that he was in favour of party unity with equal participation, which means common political ideology and equal representation in the central committee. “But we can be flexible in terms of representation in the lower committees,” a CPN-MC leader quoted Dahal as telling party leaders.

Senior CPN-MC leader Haribol Gajurel told THT that party unity should happen on the basis of equal status. “A party wins large number of seats to become the largest force in Parliament but the same party loses strength at some other point in time. We were the largest party in 2008 and the UML was the third largest party then. Now UML is the largest party and we are the third largest party,” he said.

The two task forces led by senior UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal and senior MC Leader Ram Bahadur Thapa have already submitted their reports.

Dahal told party leaders that republican order, federalism, secularism, inclusiveness and equal representation were the outcomes of people’s war. “Unity without mentioning people’s war in the preamble of the statute will be suicidal for the CPN-MC,” a leader quoted Dahal as telling party leaders.

Dahal has also said the UML should accept the power of people’s war.  UML leaders have not agreed to mention people’s war in the statute and 50 per cent representation in the central committee. They have publicly rejected the CPN-MC’s proposal on the issues.

According to sources, Dahal and CPN-MC ministers are dissatisfied with PM Oli’s latest decision to transfer secretaries without consulting Dahal and CPN-MC ministers.

Dahal has proposed two persons in the National Planning commission, but Oli has not taken this seriously, source said.