KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress General Secretary Shashanka Koirala said his party was in favour of amending the Constitution only after holding local polls by May.

Speaking at the Rafat Media Club in Bhaktapur today, Koirala also called cadres of his party to begin preparations for the polls.

Koirala's statement is apparently the polar opposite of his own party's influential leader Deputy Prime Minister Bimalendra Nidhi's statement in Dhanusha today.

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Meanwhile, Koirala urged the government to hold elections at all three levels within the stipulated time for an effective implementation of the constitution.

Koirala warned that the constitution would fail if the government failed to hold local, provincial and federal elections by January 21, 2018.

He added that the NC was not in favour of creating separate provinces for hilly and Tarai districts.

The lawmaker also clarified that NC was against splitting the Province No. 5 as mentioned in the Constitution amendment bill for it would disrupt the existing social harmony.

Speaking on a different note, Koirala said the NC would give the full shape to its Central Working Committee in the near future.