Talking to media at his residence in Pulchowk today, Shrestha said, "I am honest solider of the party. I am ready to be the prime minister if the party thought it appropriate to give me the responsibility of prime minister and if the country also needed me."
He, however, said that the UCPN (Maoist) has kept in priority the incumbent Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai to lead a national unity government. He added he was ready to take the charge of the prime minister if the opposition parties did not agree on Bhattarai´s leadership.
Some days ago, UCPN (Maoist) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ´Prachanda´ had said that Shrestha was also a candidate from the party to lead the national unity government though Dr Bhattarai was the party´s first priority for the job.
Saying that the party has no policy to make party chairman Dahal as the prime minister, the Maoist Vice-chairman stated that the UCPN (Maoist) would rethink if all other parties demanded for Dahal´s leadership to lead the national unity government.
"Latest series of dialogues and talks are not consensus-oriented. But, there was no option to consensus due to country´s present situation," Shrestha added.
He also cautioned that the regressive and anti-national forces would take benefit if consensus were not forged among the parties.
On the occasion, Shrestha ruled out the rumours that he was quitting politics.
He said, "I talked to some friends informally saying sometime I rather prefer quitting politics by seeing Nepal´s political disorder, corruption and foreign intervention. I did not say I will quit politics."
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