Kathmandu, March 22:

Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala said today Nepal is going to make an “unprecedented historical change” through the April 10 Constituent Assembly election.

“The country is in a sensitive stage of historical change. The nation is near a historic threshold, which will be crossed by holding the election peacefully,” PM Koirala said at a tea party hosted in honour of the media community at his official residence at Baluwatar.

He said that it was very urgent to hold the polls in a peaceful manner to give the nation a “new direction”. “You (media) can help open the threshold of an epoch-making change by cooperating with the government in its bid to conduct the election in a free and fair manner,” the PM told the mediapersons.

Saying that the media could help bring about unprecedented change, the PM urged the mediapersons to go to villages and inform the world community about the people’s preparedness for the polls.

“Many people simply consider the election as a matter of victory and defeat. I also say it is a kind of war, but not the war fought on the strength of weapons. Election is also a peaceful war in which both the winners and losers emerge victorious,” Koirala, flanked by senior NC leader and former PM Sher Bahadur Deuba and Home Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula, said. He said everybody would feel victorious if democracy is firmly established at the grassroots.

Koirala appreciated the international community for extending moral and other supports to Nepal for the success of the election. “We can continue getting international support and cooperation if we become successful in holding it,” he said.

Koirala said Nepal has set an example to the international community by proceeding with the peace process towards a success. “Most of the foreign friends cite an South African model of peace process whenever they visit Nepal. In fact, they are visiting Nepal to learn more from the Nepali model of peace process, which can be a good reference for the rest of the world,” he said, adding: “Indeed, we are teaching lessons to the international community on the peace process”.

He also stressed on maintaining unity of the Seven-Party Alliance for at least 10 years after the polls so as to lead the nation towards economic prosperity.

Addressing the function, former PM Deuba said the media could play a role of a catalyst in holding the polls successfully. He urged the mediapersons to visit villages to discourage the elements from rigging and booth capturing during the election. “We need to established such kind of a democratic system which cannot be taken away by undemocratic means,” Deuba said.