Kathmandu, January 17:

The confidence of leaders of the seven-party alliance appears to have gone up given the stridency in the speech delivered by leaders of the respective constituents of the alliance.

The two main parties, the Nepali Congress (NC) and the CPN-UML, today met for an emergency session where their leaders analysed the situation.

“What we have come across demonstrates a defeated mentality,” said CPN-UML leader KP Sharma Oli. He was addressing reporters after the standing committee meeting in the afternoon.

He also said the municipal polls, which are being taken as an issue of prestige by the regime, are ruled out for all practical purposes.

“It is a different thing if they want to go ahead with the farcical exercise regardless,” Oli said, even as he shot down the offer of talks by the government as “too perfunctory and hence did not even took up the issue in the discussion.” “No one can be expected to take the offer seriously since the government has been mixing talks offer with intimidation

and threat,” Oli said, flaying the imposition of curfew, which according to him, is a meaningless exercise. He also said the curfew and prohibitory orders were ordered with a view to disrupting the mass rally scheduled for Friday.

He also debunked allegations that the 12-point understanding with the Maoists was linked to the movement and its speed, saying the Maoist insurgency dates back to 1996. He also said that since the rebels have agreed to join the political mainstream, provided their demands are met, there is no substance in the allegations.

NC Vice-President Sushil Koirala and General Secretary Ram Chandra Paudel said the regime was under pressure and that the alliance should not be expected to come to a compromise with the government until achieving its full objectives related to democracy.

Both of them took note of the fact that the government could still try to browbeat the alliance by offering something or the other. The remarks came after the party analysed the current situation in the afternoon in an informal session.

“It will not take long now. But the regime could still deploy the army to scare us away. But be assured of imminent changes,” Koirala said, addressing Nepal University Teachers Association (NUTA) members.

An emergency meeting of the United Left Front (ULF) also condemned the ban on rallies and public gatherings.