Charging the Nepali Congress-led government with continuing to make political appointments by going against fresh popular mandate, the CPN-UML has decided to counter the “attempts of Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba to prolong his tenure” instead of clearing the way for a new government.

A Standing Committee meeting of the UML held at Chairman KP Sharma Oli’s residence in Balkot on Thursday also decided to urge the Election Commission to make public the results of the proportional representation category of the federal parliamentary elections at the earliest, according to party leader Shanker Pokhrel.

“The caretaker government and some people related to it have been exerting undue pressure on the constitutional bodies, misinterpreting the constitution, and making decisions having lasting impact,” said party Secretary Pradeep Gyawali.

Chairman Oli had briefed the meeting that the merger process with the CPN (Maoist Centre) was going ahead smoothly. Oli and Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who had a discussion on Wednesday, were expected to meet on Thursday as well but Oli’s engagements in his party and his “low pressure” have deferred the meeting till Friday.

“We will hold one-to-one meetings. Then the party unification coordination committee will finalise the issues soon,” a Standing Committee member quoted Oli as telling the meeting.

The two top leaders are expected to discuss modality of party unification and government formation on Friday. The unity coordination committee would then take up the issues.

Gyawali said the two parties had decided not to report all the developments on party merger and government formation before the developments take concrete shape.

Some Maoist leaders claim that merger with the UML might not be possible if the party fails to accept Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal as the new party’s executive chairman while UML leaders including Pokhrel say the unified party should have a joint leadership with Oli and Dahal as co-chairpersons.

The meeting of Oli and Dahal has given a sense of confidence among the leaders on both sides.