Kathmandu, August 17:

Political leaders have hailed the possibility of the unification of the Nepali Congress and the NC (Democratic) stating that the merger would not only strengthen the party but also make it a pillar of the whole country.

However, Minister Gopal Man Shrestha called on Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and NC (D) president Sher Bahadur Deuba to sit together and brainstorm the way to unification. “The NC should be united but the process should be well planned. There is no point doing things in haste and repenting in leisure,” he said.

The unification should come from the heart of both the parties; only then will the unity be successful, he said.

“We want to include the Maoists in the government, but they should first disarm and end their activities of terror,” he said at a press meet organised by the Reporters Club here today.

Stating that the disintegration of the NC should be forgotten as a bad dream, NC leader Mahesh Acharya said both the parties, during the unification process, will pass common decisions for the village to the central committee levels.

He further said that the unification is necessary for the country’s democratic, peaceful, social and economic transformation.

He also urged the Maoists to end deceitful politics and make their internal activities within the party democratic. At a time when a strong political force is lacking, the merger of NC and NC (D) into one will be beneficial to all, including the political parties and Maoists, said former law minister Nilambar Acharya.

The NC and CPN-UML could play a major role in strengthening the country, according to him.

The country’s democracy would not have been taken away in the first place if the NC had not split, said NC (D) leader Bijaya Kumar Gachhedar. “Given the recent turn of events, I do not see any reason to doubt Koirala,” he said.