Nepal peace talks to resume after Koirala's return
The upcoming deliberations will finalise the procedure for holding constituent assembly polls and drafting an interim Constitution.
The fresh round of peace talks between Nepal government and the Maoists will begin soon after Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala returns to Kathmandu on Saturday after celebrating Diwali with his family.
The talks will start after Koirala returns from his home town Biratnagar, said Home Minister Krishna Sitoula, who is also the coordinator of the government team for the talks.
Koirala himself told the media in Biratnagar that the talks would be held by Sunday, a private radio reported.
The upcoming discussions will finalise the procedure for holding constituent assembly polls, drafting an interim Constitution and finding a political way out of the ten-year-long armed conflict, Sitoula said.
He told reporters here that the talks were "moving ahead positively" and informal parleys had continued even during the festival.
Maoist activities like extortion and intimidation would be controlled after the next summit talks, Sitoula said, adding security forces have been mobilised to maintain peace.
He urged the Maoists to give up their weapons and allow free and fair elections to the constituent assembly scheduled to be held by June next year.
Gyawali said that the unity among the seven political parties of the ruling alliance would not be broken even if the republican front, proposed by the Maoists to sideline monarchy, is not formed.
Prime Minister Koirala had ruled out the possibility of Nepali Congress joining the republican front.
He said there was no need for such a proposal since the seven political parties have already formed a front.
The main aim of the alliance now was to establish lasting peace in the country by bringing the Maoists to mainstream politics and holding free and fair constituent assembly elections, Koirala said.
