NC LEADER SHOT AND INJURED BY MAOISTS DEAD Kathmandu, 7 June: NC former Bhaktapur district President Radheshyam Jonchhe, 69, died Wednesday. Maoists shot and injured Jonchhe in September 2002. Jonchhe let behind a wife and three sons. nnnn jO. MADHAV KUMAR NEPAL ASKS PM TO RESIGN Kathmandu, 7 June: Prime Minister Dr Baburam Bhattarai Wednesday asked two former prime ministers for help in making political consensus possible and said elections were the only loktantrik way out to the current political deadlock, The Rising Nepal writes. Continuing his bid to forge national consensus by holding discussions with political leaders and prime ministers of the post 2047 BS period, Prime Minister Dr. Bhattarai went to the residences of Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba and CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal. The Prime Minister, who had been meeting the former prime ministers earlier, intensified his talks with the leaders of different political parties in the new situation arising in the country after the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly and announcement of CA elections on November 22. The Prime Minister asked the former prime ministers to make the fresh elections successful. Prime Minister Dr. Bhattarai discussed the constitutional crisis with NC leader Deuba at the latter’s Budanilkantha residence. In the meeting, the Prime Minister appealed to the senior NC leader to assist in creating an environment for national consensus. The Prime Minister’s personal secretariat informed that the Prime Minister stressed on the need of fresh elections as the only democratic way to address the situation arising out of the CA dissolution. The secretariat informed that NC leader Deuba asked the PM not to drag the respectful post of president into disputes. Leader Deuba hailed the parties’ plea with the president to topple the government, the secretariat informed. The leaders focused their discussions on how they could forge a political consensus to resolve the ongoing deadlock, Bhanu Deuba, personal aide of Sher Bahadur Deuba, informed. In the meeting, leader Deuba urged the Prime Minister to reinstate the dissolved CA for some time to forge a political consensus. "The contentious issues of the new constitution can be solved through a commission and a referendum can also be held if needed to resolve the disputes in the constitution writing process," aide Deuba quoted former Prime Minister Deuba as saying in the meeting. In response, Prime Minister Dr Bhattarai assured that he was intensifying parleys with leaders to find political consensus and added that CA could be reinstated if all parties agreed. Meanwhile, the Prime Minister discussed with CPN-UML leader and former prime minister Madhav Kumar Nepal to find a way out of the ongoing political deadlock. During the meeting, the Prime Minister also stressed the need of moving ahead in a democratic way, that is, election. Prime Minister Dr Bhattarai asked with leader Nepal not to put ouster of the government on the top agenda as the government was not posing any hurdle in the search for national consensus, the secretariat added. The Prime Minister told leader Nepal that the resignation of the government without guarantying national consensus might create a void in the country. According to the secretariat, the Prime Minister said that he was ready to sacrifice anything if parties could forge a consensus regarding the contentious issues, including that of federalism. However, according to Nepal’s personal secretariat, leader Nepal suggested Prime Minister Dr Bhattarai should resign and create an environment for consensus in the meeting. During the meeting held at the Koteshwor residence of Nepal, leader Nepal reiterated that the agitating opposition parties would not come for talks on consensus until the resignation of the Prime Minister. Nnnn DONOR INFLUENCE ON EDUCATION SECTOR UNJUSTIFIABLE SAYS EDUCATION MINISTER SHARMA Kathmandu, 7 June: Education Minister Dinanath Sharma Wednesday said that the international donors who had invested only 20 per cent in Nepal’s education sector were trying to be dominant in the government’s policy and programmes, The Rising Nepal reports. . Speaking at a workshop on Education Review Situation in Nepal, the minister stated that the issue of nationalism was under the shadow when the state was unable to be self-reliant. Minister Sharma stated that the bureaucrats must think about the donors’ interference even in trivial issues of education. He also informed that during his tenure, the Ministry rejected some plans and programmes forwarded by the donors. He also accused the donors of trying to turn Nepal into their laboratory. Sharma said, "We have to welcome international funds but we should not be happy while receiving them." He added that qualitative change of education could be possible if all stakeholders were accountable for towards it. Kishor Thapa, Education Secretary, said every plan and programme could be made effective if the government adopted better international models according to the need of Nepal. Participants of the programme stated that education sector might collapse if the government operated it according to the plans and programmes of the foreigners at a time when a new education act is in the parliament. nnnn