INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, JULY 8The Socialist Front created by the four parties - CPN-Maoist Centre, CPN (Unified Socialist), and
Netra Bikram Chand-led Communist Party of Nepal, and Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal held its first meeting today and decided to hold
programmes in all seven provinces within a few weeks to propagate the front's policies.
EDITORIAL: Socialist Front
Leaders justify formation of Socialist Front
CPN (US) leader Rajendra Pandey told mediapersons after the meeting that a four-member
taskforce of the front comprising Rajendra Shrestha from the JSP-N, Khadga Bahadur Bishwakarma from the CPN, Pramesh Hamal from CPN (US) and
Dev Prasad Gurung from CPN-MC would prepare the blueprint of socialist policies with Nepali characteristics
The taskforce will also prepare a code of conduct which will guide the conduct of the constituent parties.The constituent parties' top
leaders will take turns to lead the front and this leadership will change every six months, according to Pandey.
Asked if
the front leaders discussed the CPN-UML's demand for the resignation of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Pandey said the ruling alliance
had already made it clear that the PM should not resign from his post."If the UML wants any clarification from the PM over anything, it can
do so during the House meetings," Pandey said and added that the UML erred by seeking the PM's resignation."UML has lost its case in
parliamentary politics," Pandey added
The UML has been obstructing proceedings in both Houses of the Parliament - the House of Representatives and the National Assembly - over PM
Dahal's alleged remarks that Indian national Pritam Singh had gone to New Delhi to make him the PM at least once.The PM has said that he was
merely referring to what Pritam Singh had told him about his desire to see him becoming the PM, but his remarks were blown out of proportion
by the UML.The Socialist Front's four-member taskforce will have a difficult task preparing the blueprint of socialism with Nepali
characteristics.Nepal's constitution stipulates that Nepal is a socialism-oriented country but there are divergent views on socialism with
some parties advocating the current model of government and other parties, particularly the left parties, advocating more pro-poor
programmes.Earlier JSP-N leader Rajendra Shrestha had told THT that the front would be committed to federal democratic, inclusive and
secular republican system.Formation of the Socialist Front is taken as an attempt by the constituent parties to increase their bargaining
power in the House of Representatives.CPN-UML leaders have said that they could support the Nepali Congress to form the new government
NC leaders have, however, refused to break the current coalition to form the next coalition with the UML.A version of this article appears
in the print on July 9, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
This article first appeared/also appeared in https://thehimalayantimes.com
