Himalayan News Service

Kathmandu, January 5:

Representatives of the four agitating parties, who vowed to continue with their street demonstration until regression is rolled back, today came down heavily on Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba and the CPN-UML for helping King Gyanendra in fostering regression.

Criticising the monarch for going against people’s aspirations, former member of parliament (MP) of the Janamorcha Nepal, Kaman Singh Lama, reiterated his party’s stand on elections to the constituent assembly, which he argued was the only way to break the political impasse.

Addressing the masses at Ratna Park after a protest rally by the four agitating parties, Lama accused the government, including coalition major UML for paving the way for possible foreign intervention. He, however, admitted lack of unanimity among the agitating forces on the issue of constituent assembly and reinstatement of the House of Representatives (HoR). “There is no guarantee that House restoration can resolve the prevailing crises,” Lama argued, reinforcing the demand for election to the constituent assembly. “This is the reason why our agitation has failed to gain momentum,” he admitted.

Prem Suwal of the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party (NWPP), toed the Nepali Congress (NC) line and emphasised on reinstatement of the HoR by the Supreme Court (SC).

“Reinstatement of the HoR by the King would provide him with more power,” Suwal argued and cautioned that the King could get more autocratic if he reinstates the HoR.

Suwal also criticised the UML for non-performance. “It (UML) has been helpless before the regressive forces to reinstate the local bodies, though it had earlier claimed it would do so,” he said. Former district development committee (DDC) of NC, Bharat Bahadur Khadka, insisted on consensus among all democratic forces to end the current turmoil.