Madhesi People´s Rights Forum (Democratic) and MPRF have indicted that they may extend support to the Maoist prime ministerial candidate Pushpa Kamal Dahal in the next round of voting. [break]
Talking to myrepublica.com, MPRF Spokesperson Ratneshwar Lal Kayastha said they have been holding internal discussions with the Maoists on the issue. “A new prime minister will be elected in the next round of voting,” he said. “We will vote for the Maoists if they come up with further clarity on the issues raised by the Madhesi parties.”
Chief Whip of MPRF (D) Ram Janam Chaudhary also said the possibility of electing new prime minister in the next voting has increased. “If the developments so far are any indication, there are chances that a new prime minister will be elected in the next round of voting,” he said.
The recent political development comes after MPRF-D Chairman Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar and MPRF Chairman Upendra Yadav held separate meetings with the Maoist Chairman Dahal this week.
Tarai Madhes Democratic Party and Sadbhawana Party, however, still appear averse to the idea of supporting a Maoist-led government.
The UMDF, which commands a total 82 votes, has remained neutral in all the five rounds of voting held earlier.
The UCPN-Maoist, which has a total 236 votes in parliament, only needs 65 additional votes to form a majority government. During the third round of voting, 11 lawmakers of the MPRF had voted in favor of the Maoist prime ministerial candidate Dahal.
MPRF-D Chairman Gachchhadar is also under pressure from the party lawmakers to support any one of the two prime ministerial candidates. The MPRF and MPRF-D has a total 53 seats in parliament.
Sadbhawana Party Vice Chairman Laxman Lal Karna and TMDP Joint General Secretary Jitendra Sonar, however, said the possibility of UDMF changing its stance is slim as none of the parties in the prime ministerial race have come up with concrete proposals to address concerns jointly raised by the Madhes-based parties.
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