Maoist Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal sneakily turned up at Nepali Congress President Girja Prasad Koirala’s residence on Wednesday and pledged full support to the octogenarian leader should he want to be the prime minister of Nepal. Kantipur reports:

The Maoists, who have until now been demanding a national unity government under their leadership, proposed the prime ministership to Girija Prasad Koirala. Dahal requested Koirala to throw his support behind him if Koirala did not want the position.

“You can lead the government from your bed,” a source quoted Dahal as saying. “I will be support you fully and firmly.”

According to the source, Koirala said he wanted to think about it.

Apparently, the staff at Koirala residence were not even aware that Dahal would be visiting. Koirala’s daughter, deputy PM Sujata Koirala, notified them about Dahal’s visit minutes before he was due to arrive.

Seems like Maoists have wholeheartedly adopted the principle that “the enemy of my enemy is my friend”. Even though Nepali Congress is in the current coalition government, this move seems to be aimed at overthrowing Madhav Kumar Nepal’s government and assigning his seat to a more friendly face.

Sujata Koirala seems to be leading the backdoor talks. Might dad Koirala turn down Dahal’s offer and nominate his daughter for the post instead?

Dahal is said to have given Koirala 48 hours to mull the proposal over. We will eagerly be waiting to hear what he has to say.

Meanwhile, Nepali Congress Central Working Committee members have warned their leaders not to make any commitments at the High Level Political Mechanism without approving it with the committee first. The Kathmandu Post writes:

In a pre-emptive measure, Nepali Congress Central Working Committee (CWC) members have warned their senior leaders to ensure that any opinion at the High Level Political Mechanism (HLPM) from the NC representative gets through only after an official endorsement by the CWC.

The warming comes from a meeting of senior NC leaders at the party headquarters in Sanepa on Tuesday. “The NC CWC has been consistently against any change in the government,” said a senior NC leader adding, “During the meeting, we also demanded that the CWC form an internal mechanism which will make all decision when it comes to selecting the party’s representative on different political appointments, such as the governor, commissioners for different commissions etc.”

We have to remind ourselves that there was considerable opposition against Koirala when he pressured Madhav Kumar Nepal in appointing Sujata Koirala as the deputy prime minister. It is likely that Koirala will face resistance from within the party if he makes a unilateral decision to accept Dahal’s offer or propose his daughter’s name for the post. The opposition within the party seems to have gotten stronger since it stripped the party president most of his power during the Mahasamiti meeting in November.

How happens next?

We might just have to wait and see.