KATHMANDU, Nov 8: Hours after 19 opposition parties submitted a memorandum to President Ram Baran Yadav asking the latter not to endorse budget sans political consensus, Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai called on the president at the latter´s official residence, Shital Niwas on Thursday evening.
Oppn leaders ask Prez not to endorse budget sans consensus
Leaders of 19 opposition parties submitted a memorandum to President Dr Ram Baran Yadav asking him not to endorse the new budget without forging political consensus at the presidential residence, Shital Niwas, Thursday evening.[break]
Speaking with reporters after the meeting with the president, UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal said that they asked the president not to endorse the budget that lacked political consensus as it was unconstitutional. [break]
Earlier, they had held a meeting at Nepali Congress (NC) central office in Sanepa. They had decided to meet the president at 5:30 pm and submit a memorandum, urging him not to endorse budget ordinance that the government is planning to submit to the state head.
Leaders from major opposition parties, including NC and CPN UML, and also other political parties not represented in the erstwhile Constituent Assembly had taken part in the meeting.
“The (ruling) UCPN (Maoist) has claimed that it can bring new budget citing support from 22 parties to the government,” UML leader Bamdev Gautam said exiting from the meeting. “We are going to meet the president to tell him that the claim is wrong.”
Another UML leader Surendra Pandey said the leaders are planning to make public their program of protest against the government amid a press conference at the UML headquarters in Balku on Saturday.
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