By Tilak Pokharel

KATHMANDU, Jan 25: The Main opposition party CPN (UML) has agreed to open the controversial Mahakali Treaty to scrutiny, thereby fulfilling one of the major conditions put forth by its splinter party CPN-ML.

The CPN-ML had wanted the treaty to be put under scrutiny and also wanted teh reorganization of the UML party structure as its main conditions for unity.

Talking to The Kathmandu Post Bharat Mohan Adhikari, co-ordinator of the UML negotiating team said that UML has written a letter to ML, fulfilling their two tough demands. Adhikari was speaking after the meeting of the CPN- UML’s standing committee on friday.

The UML has shown flexibility on the two demands that earlier was not acceptable to it – demand for restructuring the entire party system after the re-unification and other demand was that the controversial Mahakali Treaty signed with India in 1996 would be open to scrutiny, revealed a standing committee member.

“Now the restructuring of the party will definitely take place and the re-unification process will follow,” a standing committee member said on condition of anonymity.

Prior to its re-unification with CPN-UML, CPN-ML, inter alia, had been demanding that the UML ought to realise its mistake in its role in passing the much controversial Mahakali Treaty. The other demand was that there should be complete organisational restructure from grassroots to the central level after the party re-unification.

Now the UML meeting has agreed to allow the airing of different views, both positive and negative on the Mahakali Treaty, without derailing the whole re-unification process, revealed Adhikari, adding, “UML is also ready to restructure the whole organisational structure as demanded by CPN-ML.”

However, talking to The Kathmandu Post, ML leader Gautam said he has not opened the letter sent by UML. “Since the party office will be opened only on Monday, I will see the letter only that day,” he said.

Another central committee member of UML, requesting anonymity, said that today’s meeting has given sole responsibility to the negotiating team to opt for any measure favouring the re-unification. “The negotiating team now can do anything that will favour the re-unification,” he said.

Issuing a statement after today’s meet, the UML said that the party has called a meeting of its Central Committee meeting on 8th February to discuss the re-unification. However, party insiders said that the meeting was called to endorse the re-unification process. Also to come up for discussion are the forthcoming 21st Session of the parliament and the current political situation in the country. The party also decided that it would take forward the joint efforts with other parties to check the misuse of emergency by the government.