According to the prime minister´s press advisor Surya Thapa, the meeting scheduled to be held at Gokarna Forest Resort was put off after Nepali Congress leaders expressed their inability to attend the meeting due to their internal meetings.[break]
“Bilateral meetings between NC and UML and Maoist-UML are likely on Tuesday after the UML central committee meeting,” he said.
The three-party meeting was expected to settle various contentious issues related to peace process including number of Maoist combatants to be integrated in security agencies and rank harmonization.
Sources said NC leaders had decided to sit for three-party meeting only after developing a common position on peace process with UML. “We chose not to sit for the three-party meeting as UML is yet come up with its official position on issues related to the peace process,” said a senior NC leader.
The NC had instead chosen to hold a meeting with various opposition parties to develop common position on the extension of the term of Constituent Assembly. “We may sit for bilateral talks with UML Tuesday,” said the leader.
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