Parties to make last-ditch efforts for elusive consensus

KATHMANDU, MAY 08 - The talks aimed at forging consensus on disputed issues of constituent drafting ended without making headway.

   

As the repeatedly extended time-frame to explore consensus has been running, the major political forces—UCPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress (NC), CPN-UML and Samykta Loktantri Madhesi Morcha (SLMM)—have been making last-ditch efforts to forge consensus on the contentious issues as the repeatedly extended extra time is running out.

Even though the leaders claimed that they have moved closer to concrete agreement after the talks held in the Constituent Assembly (CA), the parties failed to forge consensus by Tuesday evening. Prior to the talks between major four political forces, the parties held separate meetings at UML headquarters in Balkhu and Singha Durbar.

The repeatedly extended time is turning out to be futile. The parties on Monday extended the deadline by two more days for one last time.

Though the parties-in the five-point deal signed on the midnight of Thursday- had agreed to settle the remaining issues of constitution within the next three days, they have not been able arrive at common ground on those issues.

Of the five disputed issues, the parties have forged consensus on judicial system, electoral system and citizenship provision. However, several rounds of meetings convened to forge consensus on the sticky issues of governing system and state-restructuring have failed to sort out the riddles.

Once the parties forge political consensus, the issues should be endorsed first by the dispute resolution sub-committee and subsequently constitutional committee.

Doubts have surfaced about the promulgation of new constitution with the parties failing to settle disputes pertaining to the constitution drafting even if the May 27 deadline is approaching fast.