No one knows what happened behind the closed-doors at the Gokarna resort on Wednesday. But Narayan Kaji Shrestha has told reporters that the chairmen of the big three parties are sitting for another round of talks.
Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal will make a final effort to save the current government tomorrow. But this is unlikely to yield any result as the opposition has been demanding resignation of the PM. Even UML central committee meeting formally endorsed the proposal to ‘pave the way for national unity government if there is enough basis for forging national consensus’ on Wednesday. PM Khanal who attended the meeting could only be a silent spectator.
The Maoists are in the same dilemma that the NC was in last year. UML too is divided as it was last year. But this time, the Maoists are ready to proceed with the process of PLA integration. They also seem willing to return weapons to the government and evacuate cantonments in an effort to save the Jhala Nath government. But it may be too late now.
Among the 10-point demand of NC, the contentious issue of returning the seized property will trouble Maoists the most as it has to deal with its militant cadres who are infamous for overruling their own party leadership.
All having said and done, the parties understand well that there is no alternative to giving continuity to the CA. This is also substantiated by the fact that even those that are rhetorically opposing the extension have not made public any provisional arrangements after dissolution of the house.
With the split in MJF, there is little chance that government’s extension bill, which requires 398 votes, a two-thirds majority of the existing 596 members in the CA will pass easily. It will require a political give and take that involves not just the major parties. For a change, even the fringe parties can claim their political stakes in this power brokerage.
So the question really to ask now is who calls the shot after the 28th?