Parties agree to expand cabinet by Monday

KATHMANDU, April 30: Top leaders of the UCPN (Maoist), CPN-UML and Madhesi People´s Rights Forum (MPRF) on Monday agreed to end the long-running deadlock over cabinet expansion and enlarge the 19-member cabinet by Monday.



Prime Minister´s Press Advisor Surya Thapa told Republica said the row over the home ministry is also likely to end by Monday. [break]



"...The meeting held at the prime minister´s residence at Baluwatar Saturday evening has agreed to expand the cabinet to some extend," Thapa said in a statement after the meeting of Prime Minister Jhalanath Khanal, who is also chairman of the CPN-UML, Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal and MPRF Chairman Upendra Yadav.



The meeting also finalized an agreement on power-sharing with the MPRF, which is now to get four ministries-- Foreign, Commerce and Supplies, Agriculture and Cooperatives, and Labor and Transport Management. Yadav will be Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs.



The development follows the change in the Maoist political line in favor of peace and constitution. On Friday, the central committee of the Maoist party deferred its earlier political line of revolt.



Elected on February 3, the prime minister has not been able to give full shape to his cabinet due to internal conflict among the Maoists and the row over the home ministry. The Maoists have claimed the home portfolio on the one hand and there is a controversy within the Maoists over who among them should be home minister on the other.



The parties also decided to finalize the common minimum program and policies of the coalition government very soon.

Special Committee informal meet today



Meantime, the prime minister has called an informal meeting of the Special Committee, which has not met since March 23, for Monday.



"The prime minister called the meeting to learn about the progress of the taskforce formed by the Special Committee," said Thapa.



The Special Committee, a government-formed mechanism for expediting integration and rehabilitation of Maoist combatants, had constituted the four-member taskforce on March 23 to prepare the modality for the integration and rehabilitation. But the taskforce has not met for the last one month.



Thapa said that the peace process would gain momentum following the decision of the Maoist central committee in favor of peace and constitution.

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