Chairman of the CPN (Maoist Centre) Pushpa Kamal Dahal who is also the opposition party leader, launches a broadside against the Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and former monarch all at once, stating that the formation of the government by two largest parties shows the country is heading towards a political crisis.

The way the two largest political parties formed the government is a sign of political crisis, he said during an interaction with editors and reporters on Wednesday, adding that such incidents are rare in parliamentary democracy.

Dahal, who was unseated by CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli in July second week, has been consistently attacking the CPN-UML.

The CPN-UML withdrew support to Dahal's government in the second week of July and formed a new political alliance with the Nepali Congress which has irked Dahal ever since. The covert deal between UML's Oli and Nepali Congress chief Sher Bahadur Deuba paved the way for formation of a new government under Oli’s leadership, with Dahal relegated to opposition leader.

Dahal has repeatedly blamed external and domestic forces for the fall of his government, and sometimes he claims that his anti-corruption drive was the reason behind its collapse. The Nepali Congress and CPN-UML not only decided to form a government jointly, but have also agreed to review the constitution. As per the July 1 agreement between Oli and Deuba, Oli will serve as prime minister for two years, and Deuba will succeed him.

But Dahal and his party, the Maoist Centre, have taken a tough stance against revising some of the provisions of the constitution.

Dahal on Wednesday squarely blamed the UML for standing against some of the key provisions of the constitution, particularly the republic.

“The UML does not like the present constitution,” Dahal accused, adding, “So the UML wants to abrogate it.”

This is probably the first time Dahal has made such a serious allegation against the UML. He, however, did not criticise the Nepali Congress much.

“The UML also does not like inclusiveness, proportional representation and republicanism.”

Dahal, during the interaction with journalists, claimed that Congress and UML are trying to abrogate the constitution.

“They [Congress and UML] are hell bent on abrogating the constitution. Initially they were diplomatic, and used terms like ‘review’ and ‘revision’, but internally, they wanted to abrogate the present constitution,” said Dahal.

Taking a jab at Oli, Dahal claimed that Oli’s repeated attempts to dissolve the parliament was part of a plan to undo the constitution, referring to Oli’s dissolution of the Parliament twice during his earlier term–2018 to 2022.

Meanwhile, Congress and UML leaders have been claiming that they are committed to the current constitution, but believe some of the provisions should be reviewed, as they do not align with the expectations at the time of its promulgation in 2015.

“They didn’t like inclusiveness, proportional representation, federalism and republic Nepal,” Dahal said, criticising the UML. However, Dahal himself has been mostly in power after 2015 with the support of either the Nepali Congress or UML.

But critics say as long as Dahal was supported by the Congress and UML, he never noticed their opposition to federal, secular, republican Nepal.

“We also want to review the constitution, but mainly to address the issues that have not been implemented yet,” he said, adding, “Our priority is not a review but the implementation of the constitution.”

Dahal emphasised the need for laws including a federal civil service act, and provisions for setting up provincial police, among others.

Time and again, various political parties and stakeholders have been raising these issues to strengthen federalism.

During his interaction with journalists, Dahal also made a tall claim that major forces were trying to break up his party, the Maoist Centre. He did not name who those major forces are.

The Maoist Centre has faced several splits in the past with senior leaders quitting to launch their own parties. The party is now undergoing internal struggle as senior leader Janardan Sharma has been questioning Dahal’s leadership. Dahal has been leading the party for over two decades.

When asked to comment on the recent Bhutan visit of former king Gyanendra, Dahal said that there was no chance of restoration of monarchy in Nepal.

The former king’s Bhutan visit reflects Nepal’s internal politics, but there is no chance of the monarchy’s return, he said.

“I do not see that the king will return. I do not see that possibility. We have already moved from monarchy to republic. It is also impossible due to the actions of the former king and his family,” said Dahal.