KATHMANDU, July 3: Chairpersons of the ruling Nepal Communist Party KP Sharma Oli and Pushpa Kamal Dahal held a meeting on Friday apparently in a bid to resolve their differences over a host of issues including the growing call for the resignation of Oli from the post of Prime Minister within the party.
The NCP chairman duo held a three-hour meeting at the Oli's Official Residence in Baluwatar this afternoon to rebuild trust, according to sources.
Dahal has accused Oli of running the party and government unilaterally while the latter has accused the former of non-cooperation in running the government.
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The details of today's Oli-Dahal meeting has yet to be known. After holding meeting with Oli, Dahal also met President Bidya Devi Bhandari today itself.
The meeting comes ahead of Saturday's Standing Committee meeting of the party, where majority of the party leaders are expected to call for Oli's resignation from the post of Prime Minister accusing the Oli government of failing to live up to the people's expectations and responding to COVID-19 pandemic.
Earlier today, a group of the NCP's second-rung leaders held a meeting in the ministers' conclave in Lalitpur. The meeting witnessed the participation of Agriculture Minister Ghanshyam Bhusal, Tourism Minister Yogesh Bhattarai, Energy Minister Barshaman Pun and NCP's Standing Committee member Janadardan Sharma.
The second-rung leaders of the party who joined the meeting decided to exert pressure on the top party leadership to resolve ongoing intra-party rift through dialogue thereby keeping the party unity intact, according to a leader.
Meanwhile, a section of NCP leaders including Ram Kumari Jhakri and Bijaya Poudel have started a sit-in at the party headquarters, Dhumbarahi, on Friday, in a bid to exert pressure on the top leadership to keep the party intact by avoiding the possible threat of party split.
