Kathmandu, May 01: Maoists supremo Prachnanda today demanded the resignation of the Nepal Prime Minister Madhav Kumar, stepped up his anti-India rhetoric and asked neighbouring countries not to interfere in Nepal’s internal affairs.
Adressing a rally of thousands of Maoist cadres, who had assembled in the heart of the capital to mount fresh pressure on Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to quit, Prachanda said the agitation is our compulsion not a choice.
The political leaders are struggling to meet a May 28 deadline to finish the drafting of a new constitution as stipulated by the peace process that brought the civil war to an end in 2006.
The Maoists, who have around 40 percent of the seats in parliament, want the government disbanded, followed by the formation of a new coalition government led by them.
Prachanda pointed out that their movement was aimed at dissolution of the present government and forming a new Maoist-led coalition to rescue the peace process and draft a
new constitution.
He accused the government of not being serious in drafting the constitution and establishing peace in the country.
Prachanda, who had last year blamed India’s “naked interference” for the political crisis in Nepal, stepped up his anti-India rhetoric. Earlier, he had also demanded the scrapping of the 1950 Peace and Frienship Treaty and other “unequal treaties” with India.
He asked Indian leaders not to commit the mistake by lending support to the present government which is attempting to crush the Maoists by force.
He said the Maoists want good relations with India on the basis of a new dimension and new basis, but we want to ensure our rights and freedom.
The Maoists had earlier accused India of encroaching upon Nepalese territories, which has been refuted by New Delhi as the two countries have held talks to end the border row.
“We can’t tolerate our land being encroached,” he told thousands of the Maoists supporters. “We want all the unequal treaties to be scraped and protect our national independence,
he said.
Prachanda warned the government not to suppress the movement with the backing of foreign powers. He asked neighbouring countries not to interfere in Nepal’s internal affairs.
As the government put the security forces on high alert, he called upon all nationalistic forces to join hands for national independence and asked the army and police to
safeguard the country’s integrity.
While the PM has refused to step down, saying that the goverment formed with the support of majority in parliament, can only be changed through legal parliamentary process.
—Agencies