We will not be part of any government during the tenure of this Parliament: Chief Secretary of NC Secretariat Krishna Prasad Paudel

KATHMANDU, NOVEMBER 22

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli’s meeting with Nepali Congress President leader Sher Bahadur Deuba yesterday has been interpreted by media outlets as the PM’s attempt to seek the main opposition party’s support to run a coalition government if the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) splits.

A war of words has escalated between the ruling party’s rival factions after NCP Co-chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal presented a 19-page proposal in the party Secretariat meeting last week accusing the PM of failing to run the government and the party. The Oli faction has dismissed Dahal’s proposal as a document of baseless allegations.

Chief Secretary of NC Secretariat Krishna Prasad Paudel told THT that the PM met Deuba yesterday to discuss appointments in almost a dozen universities. Deuba is an office bearer in the Constitutional Council chaired by the prime minister.

Paudel said the talk of Oli discussing a possible alliance with the NC was just a rumour.

“Our party is neutral in the NCP’s intra-party feud and is committed to shouldering the responsibility of the main opposition as mandated by voters.

We will not be part of any government during the tenure of this Parliament,” he said.

NC Spokesperson Bishwa Prakash Sharma tweeted that the NC would remain in the opposition and would not be enticed by any sop. He added that NC lawmakers were not part of any power equation.

NC leader Arjun Narsingh KC tweeted, “There is a rumour that PM Oli has proposed to form a coalition government with the NC. For NC, joining a coalition government with the force that came to power by making false promises of providing stability, heralding prosperity and turning the country into a paradise and has been mired in corruption will be suicidal.”