Less than a week after establishing a separate party, chairman of the new CPN-Maoist Mohan Baidya has started holding political meetings. On Sunday, Baidya and other senior leaders of the party met President Ram Baran Yadav in his office. In the meeting, Baidya officially informed President Yadav about the new party and expressed his political position in the current situation.

Baidya said that his party was in favor of forming an interim government comprising of all major political forces and holding a round table conference to end the present political crisis. Giving media statement after the meeting he said, “We have requested the president to initiate process for holding a round table meeting of all major political forces to end the current political deadlock.”

The recently concluded national conclave of the leaders which declared the new party had passed the political document in favour of ending the present impasse by completing the constitution. But the document remains silent about parliamentary engagements of the party. Its leaders have been giving media statements that the party will not engage with parliamentary forces and instead work for revolutionary restructuring of the state. However, the leaders have been careful not to mention people’s revolt, a line that they had been toeing even within the former party.

Meanwhile, the split is already leading to competing position claims in both the parties. While the dispute has started in new party about seniority claims, the parent party has also been unable to fill in the central committee positions left vacant after many senior leaders joined the new party. Similarly, 26 sister organization of the party is also undergoing major changes as disgruntled factions of students and labour unions as well as ethnic and Madhesi groups are breaking away, ensuing disputed claims over resources including office buildings and logistics.

Anurag Acharya