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Top leaders agree on interim statute

Saturday - 16th December 2006

KATHMANDU, Dec. 16: There was no news of the eight parties agreeing on the interim constitution till 5 am Saturday morning even after 15 hours of the meeting and discussions.

The meeting had started at 3 o'clock Friday afternoon with the leaders of the main parties claiming that they had hammered out all the differences and only the final touch remained. But the nightlong meeting did not come to any conclusion.

Reporters had waited from afternoon outside the Prime Minister's residence at Baluwatar waiting for the news, but nothing, except for some broken pieces of information, came even after the call of the rooster the next morning.

Still, some reports trickling out from the meeting rooms said that the eight parties had finally agreed on the interim constitution one-hour after midnight in a historic political decision to strip the monarch of all powers and transfer them to the prime minister.

The scroll bar of Nepal Television at about 3 am Saturday morning read that Prime Minister as head of the government will be using all the powers and prerogatives of the head of the state as interim arrangement till the new constitution is promulgated through the constituent assembly.

It also said the parties had agreed to seek advice of the Election Commission on using two separate ballot papers and two ballot boxes to elect assembly members under a mixed electoral system � direct and proportionate elections. The interim constitution will also have 167 Articles against the 133 Articles of the existing constitution to be replaced.

The report said the interim constitution would come into effect only after the management of the arms and the armies. But the scroll bar was taken off after about an hour.

Another piece of information coming out from inside said that Home Minister Krishna Prasad Sitaula was briefing the top leaders at about 3:45 in the morning. At the same time, Arjun Narsingh KC of Nepali Congress and Ishwor Pokharel of CPN-UML declined to respond over the phone saying they were in the midst of meeting. At 4:00 in the morning, Deputy Prime Minister Amik Sherchan said that agreement had been reached on the interim constitution and only the signing remained.

Shortly afterwards, none of those who were inside the Prime Minister's residence could be reached on their mobiles. All their mobiles were switched off.


Source gorkhapatra