By Sudeshna Sarkar
Kathmandu, Nov 29 (IANS) The historical battle to determine King Gyanendra’s fate that was started by the Maoist guerrillas in parliament last month continued to drag on with the house skirting crucial issues Thursday and then being adjourned till Sunday.
Called Thursday after a hiatus of 10 days, the house failed to see any progress in the battle between the Maoists, backed by their communist allies, and Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala and his Nepali Congress party over abolishing the crown immediately without waiting for the election.
The ruling parties and the Maoists failed to utilise the break to reach an understanding.
While the rebels are demanding the axing of monarchy and adoption of a fully proportional election system, Koirala is opposing both on the ground that when the Maoists signed a peace pact last year, they had agreed to take part in an election that would seal the king’s fate and a mixed system for the election.
Since September, after the Maoists walked out of the government and forced Koirala to call a special parliamentary session to discuss their demands, the crisis has become graver with the elections being put off indefinitely.
The Maoists have also threatened to start a new revolt if the current parliament session fails to implement the demands, and Koirala’s biggest ruling partner, the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist, is now hankering to oust him and take his place.
The international community has asked Koirala to name fresh poll dates during the current session.
While India has warned that the Koirala government is losing its legitimacy, Denmark has said it would ask the government to refund the over Nepali Rs. two billion it poured in for the elusive elections.
At least, the house session has to start proceedings to amend the interim constitution that had laid down the provision for the election to be held on Nov 22, a date Nepal failed to keep.
Instead, Thursday’s parliament session in the morning was dominated by women MPs, who drew the speaker’s attention to the growing violence against women, the lack of laws to curb it and the failure of the government to implement the existing laws.
The only work of note was the passing of a bill that would now pave the way for a law with teeth to control abduction, slavery and human trafficking.