Nepali Congress (NC) leader Ramesh Lekhak has said that the second phase of local level elections slated for June 28 would not be postponed even if the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal (RJPN) stays away from the polls.

Expressing his confidence that the RJPN would take part in the elections, the NC said that the polls would not be postponed even if it did not participate in the elections.

“We are confident that the RJPN will take part in the elections,” he said during an interaction organised at the Reporters’ Club in the Capital on Monday.

As the main opposition CPN-UML had already said that the constitution would be amended after the elections, leader Lekhak said that the government would initiate the process to amend the constitution after the elections.

Also speaking at the same programme, UML leader Pradeep Gyawali said that the protest programmes announced by the RJPN to foil the elections would be destructive to the party.

Saying that the Madeshi people want local representatives and elections on time, he said that the second phase local polls should be made productive and the RJPN should take part in the elections notwithstanding its reservations.

Similarly, CPN (Maoist Centre) leader Haribol Gajurel said that the RJPN had made a blunder by announcing the protest programmes.

“The RJPN has decided to boycott the elections. The decision will be suicidal to the party,” said leader Gajurel said.

Likewise, RJPN leader Mahendra Raya Yadav clarified that the party was forced to announce the protest programmes.

“We were forced to announce the protest programmes after the government did not address our demands,” he said.