Kathmandu, June 13 :

A Maoist leader and member of the Maoist-Government talks team Dev Gurung today raised doubts over the government’s commitment to hold talks for “constructive purposes”.

“We do not know whether the government really wants to hold talks or only buy time to remain in power,” the Maoist leader said at a programme organised by the All Nepal Women’s Association-Revolutionary (ANWA-R), the women’s wing of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist).

On one hand, the seven political parties reinstated the House, which was not an agenda of the mass movement, he said. On the other, the parties have not yet made concrete efforts for holding the election to a Constituent Assembly (CA), a major agenda of the 12-point understanding and the people’s movement. “Some clear indications have made us suspect about the parties’ commitment. Suspicion over the parties’ intention has increased in recent days,” he said.

Laying stress on the need to hold talks, “a phase of the movement”, immediately, he

said: “The party is now concentrating on this phase.”

“We have passed several phases of the revolution in a decade.

Now we believe that monarchy and feudalism can be abolished through talks,” he said.

According to him, the longer the situation remains undecided, the longer monarchy will survive and that the delay in talks is associated with monarchy. The Maoist leader further said: “By not letting the democratic forces work along, a regressive force is trying to create a split among us. We have to be alert on the matter.”

Stating that the people’s movement has thrown the old constitution into the dust bin,” the Maoist leader said, warning: “It will be unfortunate if one tries to prove the legality of the past constitution. A new interim government should be formed with equal participation of the seven parties, the Maoists and the civic society leaders, who helped make the movement successful.”

Finding an international monitoring mechanism for supervision of the Nepali Army and the

People’s Revolutionary Army and the formation of a National Army comprising sections of both the armies are other major agendas of discussions, he said.