Oli, Prachanda hold fresh talks amid intra-party rifts

Amid the intra-party rifts in the ruling NCP, Oli and Prachanda have resumed discussions but reports say that they are nowhere close to a power-sharing deal. Multiple key ruling party leaders had demanded Oli's resignation after he said that meetings are being held in New Delhi to topple his government.

Kathmandu:Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and co-chair of the ruling communist party Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda on Tuesday resumed talks after a six-day hiatus in a bid to save the party from a split in the wake of growing differences between the two factions led by them.

Prachanda's press advisor said that the two chairs of the Nepal Communist Party have resumed discussions, The Kathmandu Post reported.

The talks are taking place ahead of the crucial Standing Committee meeting on Friday which is expected to determine the political future of the 68-year-old prime minister who has previously alleged that his detractors were trying to remove him with India's help.

The key meeting is taking place days after NCP executive chairman Prachanda said that he will not allow the party to split and any attempt from anywhere to weaken its unity would hurt the fight against the coronavirus pandemic and natural disasters.

Prachanda, addressing the NCP members in his hometown Chitwan on Sunday, said he was determined to keep the party unity intact as it is natural to have differences of opinion, dispute and debate in a big party.

Top party leaders, including 'Prachanda', have been demanding Prime Minister Oli's resignation, saying his recent anti-India remarks were "neither politically correct nor diplomatically appropriate".

The differences grew further after Oli said that some of the ruling party leaders are aligning with the southern neighbour to remove him from power after his government issued a new political map incorporating three Indian territories.

Oli and Prachanda, who have held over half-a-dozen one-on-one meetings in recent days, are nowhere close to a power-sharing deal.

PTI