Far from resolving the political problem, the petition itself has now become a new problem. The President´s Office finds itself in a difficult position. Since the petition explicitly mentions that the prime ministerial candidacy of NC leader Ram Chandra Paudel is no longer valid in parliament, which is a contested issue, the President´s Office is concerned whether summoning parliament would somehow validate the petitioners´ claim.
The status of Paudel´s candidacy is not just controversial but it is a complicated one as well. Generally, any proposal tabled in parliament becomes dead once the session is over. But a prime ministerial candidacy is too serious a matter to be considered defunct once the government decides to prorogue the session. Otherwise, it would mean that a caretaker government can avert an election in parliament for an indefinite number of times if it so wishes, through the simple expedient of a prorogue.
If there is a positive side to the petition, it´s this: It should expedite inter-party consultations and talks that have remained frozen with the fall in Kathmandu´s temperature. The talks, stalled to allow the Maoists to participate in their party plenum four weeks ago, have not yet resumed. And therein lies the main problem. No political party´s unilateral move inside or outside parliament is going to resolve the current stalemate. Only joint effort and a collective decision of at least the major political parties can address the current deadlock.
There is now a two-week window of opportunity before the president does summon a special session. The parties should exploit this and immediately resume talks to reach a deal on the peace process, constitution-writing and power-sharing. To plunge into unnecessary posturing and grandstanding during a special session of parliament will only reinforce differences among the parties and further trivialize politics. That´s least expected during these trying times.
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