They said that insisting on unveiling the new budget without taking the opposition into confidence would further sour the government´s relations with other parties and that would eventually deepen the political crisis.[break]
"Settling disputes surrounding constitution writing and the peace process before May 28 has become more urgent. Therefore the prime minister should concentrate all efforts on those two major tasks instead of diverting attention to the budget issue," Lawmaker Ram Nath Dhakal said at the ruling UML´s parliamentary party meeting on Friday.
While most members present at the meeting urged the prime minister not to eclipse the issue of peace and constitution by taking up some other issue, some lawmakers argued that both could be taken ahead simultaneously. "The government can take these tasks ahead together but statute-drafting and the peace process shouldn´t be placed on the backburner under any excuse," Ravindra Adhikari said at the same meeting.
He also criticized the opposition parties´ move opposing the government decision to bring the new budget ´in time´. He said, "This sounds a bit unnatural in parliamentary practice".
Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal tried to allay lawmakers´ concerns about the government´s strained relations with the opposition and other parties.
"There is no dispute among the major parties about bringing the budget. The difference over "whether we should wait for a couple of weeks for the purpose or we shouldn´t" is only technical and we need not split hairs over the matter," the prime minister said at the meeting. He assured that the government would consult the opposition and other parties on introducing the new budget.
Indicating a previous agreement over the matter between the government with the main opposition Nepali Congress (NC), the prime minister urged the opposition parties to stand firm by past commitments. "The opposition parties are blowing up the issue as if the sky would fall if the government brings the budget even though they had earlier agreed over the same matter," Khanal said at the meeting.
The president, on the government´s recommendation, has summoned the budget session starting Monday. But the main opposition NC and Madhes-based and other smaller parties have objected to the government move, demanding that the issue of peace and constitution be given top priority and the government´s attention not be diverted toward budgetary matters.
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