PM BHATTARAU GETS FDRA SUPPORT Kathmandu, 23 Dec.: : A meeting of the Federal Democratic Republic Alliance (FDRA) has decided to form a national consensus government under the leadership of Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai, RSS reports.. The meeting held at the Prime Minister´s official residence in Baluwatar on Sunday morning decided to lay emphasis on the formation of a national consensus government under the leadership of the incumbent Prime Minister and to hold meetings and discussions with the opposition parties on this basis. According to General Secretary of the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (Democratic), Jitendra Dev, the FDRA also decided to find out new candidate for the Prime Minister from the FDRA if a national consensus government was not possible under the leadership of Baburam Bhattarai. During the meeting, discussion was also held on the nine-point proposal approved by the United Democratic Madhesi Front on Saturday, it is learnt. Coordinator of the FDRA and Chairman of the UCPN-Maoist, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, briefed the meeting about the decisions approved by the UCPN-Maoist´s central office. The meeting also discussed on the future course of action move in the context of the expiry on Saturday of the latest deadline given by President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav to political parties for the formation of a consensus government. During the meeting, Coordinator of the UDMF, Bijay Kumar Gachchhadar informed about the nine-point proposal approved by the UDMF on Sunday. Dev said that they have decided to hold the next meeting at 4:00 pm today after analyzing the overall situation. Nnnn MEDIA INCLUSION COMMISSION MEETS Kathmandu, 23 Dec.: The commission constituted to identify the feasibility of making the media inclusive and present a report on the same started its work, RSS reports. In this connection, the commission has asked the Ministry of Information and Communications to forward its views and suggestions for making the media inclusive. The office of the commission is at the Ministry of Information and Communications, Singha Durbar. The commission was formed by a decision of the Council of Ministers on September 13, 2012. Nnnn UML CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEET ADJOURNED Kathmandu, 23 Dec.: A UML central committee meet that began was adjourned until 30 December for discussions on current issues with other parties during the crisis. Chairman Jhalanath Khanal in a political report suggested toppling of government through street protests. The opposition party is siding with NC in the present power configuration. Sunday’s meeting was to discuss appointments to vacancies and responsibilities for office bearers. nnnn. MINISTER AMONGN NINE KILLED IN TALIBAN ATTACK Kathmandu, 23 Dec.: Taliban Islamic militants bombed a political rally in Pakistan's northern city of Peshawar on Saturday, killing nine people including a provincial minister, officials said, the latest in a string of high-profile attacks, Reuters reports from Peshwar.. The provincial minister for local government, Bashir Ahmad Bilour, died of his wounds at Lady Reading Hospital, the hospital's chief executive Arshad Javed said. Police official Ibrahim Khan said one policeman had been killed and several were among the 30 people injured. Taliban spokesman Ihsanullah Ihsan claimed responsibility for the attack and said the insurgency would continue to target the Awami National Party, the largest political party in the northerly Khyber Pakhtunkwa province. The bombing follows last week's attack on Peshawar airport, when nine people including five attackers died in a car bomb, rocket and gun attack. This week, nine polio vaccinators were shot dead in the southern city of Karachi and in and around Peshawar. The Taliban says it was not responsible for those killings, although Taliban commanders have repeatedly condemned the polio vaccination drive as a plot to spy on or sterilise Muslims. Army officials told Reuters recently that Hakimullah Mehsud, the official leader of the Pakistani Taliban, had lost the trust of his fighters and surrendered operational control to his deputy, Wali-ur-Rehman - a claim denied by the Taliban. It is not clear if the uptick in violence is connected to turmoil within the leadership. nnnn