Nepali Congress leader Ram Chandra Poudel on Sunday met party President Sher Bahadur Deuba to urge him to focus on implementing the constitution rather than engaging in a power game.

A team of leaders including Central Committee (CC) members Prakash Man Singh, Ram Sharan Mahat and Treasurer Sita Devi Yadav requested Deuba to keep at least senior leaders in the loop while forging crucial deals with other parties. Leaders termed the meeting held at the party president’s residence in Budhanilkantha as “regular internal talks”.

According to Poudel, Deuba was asked to follow the party’s procedure and consult with senior party leaders before nominating candidates for the central committee and the party office bearers. “We

basically asked him to regularly hold meetings in the party so that everyone is taken into confidence when the party takes such a decision,” Poudel told the Post.

Following the CPN (Maoist Centre)’s withdrawal from the government last week, the NC and the Maoists have agreed to form a new government. The KP Sharma Oli-led government faces a vote of no-confidence in Parliament on Thursday after being left in  a minority.

“We were talking about calling a CC meeting to discuss the party’s next step as the government faces a no-confidence vote,” said Mahat.

On Wednesday, despite the CC unanimously endorsing the decision to form a government under Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and acknowledging the seven-point agreement and the verbal pact reached between the two parties, some leaders had expressed their concerns over how they were kept aloof from such developments.

Sources said that Poudel, Singh and Sujata Koirala, among others, had urged the party leadership to take into confidence senior leaders before taking decisions or signing pacts. Deuba, in response, clarified that he had acted discreetly in fear that the pact could be jeopardised.

However, NC leader Bimalendra Nidhi claimed that he had informed Poudel about the deal beforehand. “But since we were criticised by party colleagues that we were immature the last time we had a deal with Dahal before he made a volte face, we opted to keep the developments to ourselves,” said Nidhi.

At a time when the NC will have several positions for its members in the new government, and nominations within the party itself, sources said Poudel tried to use this opportunity to extract concessions. As per a tentative agreement, the NC will get at least 12 ministries. In the party, Deuba is yet to give the central committee its full shape.

Notably, no leader from the so-called rival faction led by Poudel was invited to the NC’s and Maoist Centre’s joint consultation with legal experts regarding constitutional barriers to government formation on Saturday.