"It did not come out of my positive thinking to hold talks with Delhi. It was a kind of political satire," the Maoist chairman said in his interview to BBC Nepali Service Wednesday evening. "The political parties here should stop waiting for Delhi´s call and should come for dialogues in their own capacity. It would be reasonable if you understand my statement that way," said Dahal while expressing regret that his statement was "misunderstood."
He called on the journalists to listen to his speech in its entirety and that the speech was not against dialogues to end the political deadlock, but against the Indian interference. "I meant political parties should stop waiting for Delhi´s call and they should not operate like robots. The spirit of the speech was that the parties should appear in their own capacity and solve the problem. If not, nobody can stop people from making the final verdict," he said.
"So it was a satire, a political strike," he said, adding, "I came to know that people did not understand it in a correct way only after going through media reports in the morning."
Whipping up the masses at the party´s rally at New Baneshwar on Tuesday, Dahal said, "I have no energy for talks with the leaders of the CPN-UML and the Nepali Congress… Now the talks will be held only be with their master (India)."
The former rebel leader deplored the Indian influence on Nepal and argued that when he was prime minister he had rejected many Indian suggestions that were against Nepal´s interest.
On the party´s three-day general strike, Dahal said his party had the support of the masses. "Whenever there is a political deadlock, it doesn´t end without people´s sacrifice. If this historic move (of the president) is not corrected, it may invite autocracy," he said, justifying the general strike.
He expressed hope that the constitution could be promulgated on time if the deadlock ended. "This [remaining] five-month period is enough if we concentrate on constitution writing process," he said.
Dahal bashes media
"Dahal´s formal call, at a rally, to a neighboring country to settle the internal power politics is a foolhardy move, never ever taken by a leader of a responsible political party."
When BBC journalist Rabindra Mishra read out this sentence from the Nagarik daily editorial as the representative media comment on his speech, Dahal said that it was the extreme misinterpretation and distortion of his speech. "There can be no worse distortion and conclusion of the theme of my speech in its entirety than that… It is yellow journalism."
He said this speech was misused for a "propaganda". "I regard it nothing less than yellow journalism."
UML denounces Dahal´s remark
A politburo meeting of the ruling Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) has denounced Maoist chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal´s statement as an open invitation to external interference in Nepal´s internal political affairs.
“Our party has concluded that the statement has undermined the ongoing talks [among other political parties] on ending the political deadlock and it is a dangerous plot hatched with an intention to openly invite external interference in Nepal´s internal political affairs,” a statement issued by the UML said. “The meeting denounces the Maoist´s anti-nationalist statement under the veil of ultra-nationalism.”
The UML also criticized the Maoists for undermining the national political actors´ role in resolving the country´s internal matters. The party said the Maoists have been pushing the country toward confrontation by announcing autonomous states, enforcing general strikes and seizing public land among other activities. It has also urged the Maoists not to give continuity to such irresponsible activities and statements.
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