Former Nepalese Prime Minister and chair of CPN-UML KP Sharma Oli has called up CPN (Maoist Centre) chief Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda and proposed that they work together. Prachanda reportedly told Oli to wait until the final election results are out, reports The Kathmandu Post. His personal assistant Ramesh Malla confirmed the phone conversation. According to Malla, Oli suggested that the two leaders forget their past bitterness and forge a new partnership to lead the country. Last year, the Oli-led government fell after the Maoist Centre withdrew support. A UML leader, who is in regular communication with second-rung leaders of the Maoist Centre, said his party is open to negotiations with everyone. “But our first priority would be to form a government without the Nepali Congress.” “The second-rung leaders of the Maoist Centre are shocked by the election results, especially as their electoral partnership with the Nepali Congress did not favour them,” the UML leader said. The Maoist Centre that had won 36 parliamentary seats under the first-past-the-post elections in 2017 is set to win only around half the tally this time. Oli has expressed dismay over the results and warned that the country appears headed for political instability.
