Kathmandu: Former Prime minister Deuba’s long drawn struggle (verbal duel at times included) with his political rival Prime minister Koirala allowed him to extract some “needed authority” from government to initiate talks with the Maoists, however, the insurgents surprisingly through a statement gave the notification that unless Koirala establishment complied with their minimum conditions set for the talks, they will not come to the negotiating table.
However, the revolutionaries have not closed all the doors for talks with the government provided the latter yields to their minimal demands prior to such talks.
Reacting to these fresh Maoists approach, Deuba expressed his consternation over the statement issued by the insurgents and said that it was simply deplorable.
Maoists no to the talks with Deuba prompted Prime Minister Koirala to cut joke at the former.
In a Pokhara meeting the other day Koirala subtly asked Deuba regarding the progress achieved in the talks with the Maoists after he delegated “powers” to him for initiating talks with the insurgents. A dumb founded Deuba perhaps possesses no answers to this Koirala mockery.
In essence, Koirala’s own trusted and tested men deputed to talk with the Maoists have in the recent days met with some “prominent” Maoists leaders.
Former Panchayati stalwart, Shailendra Kumar Upadhyaya and self-styled communist leader Padma Ratna Tuladhar are reportedly the men of Koirala at the moment. Some even say that one Maoist leader met with Mrs.Nona Koirala-the sister-in-law of the incumbent Prime minister.
There was a time not long ago when Deuba not only felt cozy with the Maoists but also held the government responsible in dilly-dallying the talks with the insurgents giving all and sundry the impression that he was some way or the other “siding” with the violent insurgents contrary to the party’s policies and the spirit of the prevailing constitution.
It was perhaps this rumored Deuba-Maoist close attachment that prompted Koirala to cut Deuba’s size in this regard and instead the Prime minister pushed his own men for talks with the Maoists.
This notwithstanding, Prachanda alias Pushpa Kamal Dahal-the Maoists supremo in a fresh statement issued this Sunday has again made it clear that “upon the sincere requests of the responsible citizens and members of the civil societies, we had accepted to talk to the government. But, instead of accepting our minimum conditions for talks, the government led by Koirala began wanton killings under one pretext or the other. Now we have decided to wage a relentless “resistance” against the Fascist Girija establishment from all possible quarters”’.
However, the statement still has not closed the avenues for the possible talks with the government.
The theory that some Maoists leaders have met Koirala’s trusted men in the recent days appears to be more than fabricated. Sources close to Deuba also claim that the latter is still in close contacts with the insurgents. Consider the fresh statements issued by the Maoists. All these put together what could be best said at this juncture is that the Maoists have benefited from Koirala-Deuba feud. Or what could also be guessed here is that the insurgents were buying time to consolidate their organization to initiate their fresh avowal of “fierce resistance” against the government.
Who is be-fooling whom in this regard is difficult to understand. After all Nepali politics is full of conspiracy.