Where is the country's politics heading?
Now is the time to set a new political trend through a new constitution. But the political parties did not act as they should have, which has resulted in the current political deadlock.

Can the CA come up with a constitution in this situation?
Time is running out to resolve the political differences and draft a new constitution. But we should not rush the constitution – it would be wise to find a lasting solution even if it needs two more months.

How do you think things should go if the constitution is not written by 28 May?
It is sad that the constitution-writing deadline will not be met. This was all our fault. It is still the political parties that will have to take responsibility to deal with the situation after May. The political parties have to come up with a constitution anyway.

What prevented political parties from reaching a consensus?
The CA should have been kept away from political prejudices, which unfortunately did not happen. The CA Regulations say that CA members need not obey their party whip in the CA sessions, but this did not happen in practice. We defended our political ideologies even in the CA.

What is your take on federalism?
We have already approved the federal system. We took the decision on federalism thinking of the prosperity that the system might bring. We were not expecting the people to be divided on an ethnic basis. We cannot afford to risk the prosperity of the country under a federal structure by demanding political prerogatives in the provinces drawn along ethnic lines.

READ ALSO:
Constitution 2010, Nepali Times coverage of issues related to writing the new constitution