RAJENDRA K.KHETAN ELECTED Kathmandu, 2 June: Rajendra K Khetan has been elected president of the Nepal Britain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NBCCI) general assembly Khetan succeeds Mahendra Shrestha. nnnn MAHOTO FOR ANOTHER POLL ALLIANCE Kathmandu, 2 June: A week after Chairman of the Tarai Madhes Democratic Party (TMDP) Mahantha Thakur called a gathering of Madhes-based political parties in a bid to start necessary homework for forming an electoral alliance, Sadbhawana Party (SP) has said that it would form a separate alliance to fight for the cause of Madhesi, Muslim, Dalit and indigenous peoples, Republia reports.. “We have been holding formal and informal talks with various Madhes-based parties and indigenous, Dalit, Muslim organizations and other armed outfits, which are in talks with the government, on the formation of such an alliance,” SP Chairman Rajendra Mahato told Republica. He stated that the alliance would stand in favor of Constituent Assembly (CA) election, new statute and federalism. “It may also work as an electoral alliance,” added Mahato. According to SP General Secretary Manish Kumar Suman, they will also hold talks with the parties that have split from SP in the past. “We will hold talks with Federal Sadbhawana Party-led by Anil Kumar Jha, National Sadbhawana Party-led by Ram Naresh Raya and SP (Anandi Devi) led by Sarita Giri, Devendra Mishra and Khushi Lal Mandal separately,” Suman maintained. Asked if his party would join the present United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF), Mahato said, “I don´t even know if UDMF exists as the alliance has not held even a single meeting for a long time now.” A meeting of SP central working committee held in the capital on Tuesday had decided to hold talks with like-minded political parties and ethnic groups either to form a single party or to work together for common issues. The SP decision indicates that there is little possibility of a single alliance of Madhes-based parties to materialize. Upendra Yadav has already formed Federal Democratic Forum (FDF) that comprises seven parties, including Madhesi People´s Rights Forum (MPRF) and National Madhes Socialist Party-led by Sharat Singh Bhandari. Similarly, Thakur has taken initiatives to form an electoral alliance of Madhesi parties. Former minister Jaya Prakash Prasad Gupta, who has been holding Tarai Madhes National Campaign across Madhesi districts, has been garnering support to Thakur. Nnnn BIG THREE OPPOSE REGMI RESIGNATION CALL AS CJ Kathmandu, 2 June: Top leaders of three major political parties have said that resignation of Khil Raj Regmi, the head of the interim election government, from the post of chief justice would further complicate the situation, Republica reports.. CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal, Nepali Congress Vice-president Ram Chandra Paudel and UCPN (Maoist) Spokesman Agni Prasad Sapkota at three separate events gave similar statements saying Regmi"s resignation as the head of judiciary would be tantamount to deferring the polls. Khanal said his party was against the demand for Regmi"s resignation as CJ. “Regmi"s resignation as CJ is not the need currently. Consensus and election are our needs. We must head toward consensus,” Khanal told media persons in his home district Ilam on Saturday. Former Constituent Assembly Chairman Subas Nembang from the same party, however, refused to comment on that matter. “Our party chairman is here and he has already spoken on the issue. Whatever the chairman said is also my opinion,” he said. Lawyer-turned-politician Nembang had firmly stood against the proposal to form an election government under the leadership of sitting chief justice. After formation of the present government, he has been supporting Nepal Bar Association"s demand for Regmi"s resignation as CJ. While party Chairman Khanal and some other leader including KP Sharma Oli are against Regmi"s resignation as CJ, some other leaders including former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal, Nembang, General Secretary Ishwar Pokharel and Secretary Shankar Pokharel are in favor of the resignation. Similarly, NC Vice President Ram Chandra Paudel, addressing a gathering in Kathmandu on Saturday, said that demand for CJ"s resignation was untimely as “it would only spoil the environment for election”. “The demand is objectionable because those who are demanding Regmi"s resignation are projecting a normal issue as an unusual one,” said Paudel. He also came down heavily on those who organized a mass gathering at New Baneshwar to protest against the government on May 29 and boycotted the Republic Day Ceremony organized by the president the same day. Paudel accused them of working against democracy and republic and confusing the public. While Paudel and other leaders, including Sher Bahadur Deuba, are against Regmi"s resignation as CJ, party President Sushil Koirala and some other have been insisting that Regmi should resign as CJ if that helps bring the dissident political parties on board the election process. Likewise, UCPN (Maoist) Spokesperson Agni Prasad Sapkota has ruled out any possibility of the party seeking Regmi"s resignation. “We will not accept the demand for Regmi"s resignation at any cost because it has come with a bad intention of disrupting the election process,” Sapkota told media persons at the party head office at Paris Danda on Saturday. Stating that the parties had reached a political agreement on forming the CJ-led government only after around 10-month long rigorous discussions, he explained that breaching the 11-point deal that paved the way for formation of the present government is unacceptable because that would immediately disrupt the ongoing election process. “Those who have been demanding Regmi"s resignation are the same persons who are working against the upcoming Constituent Assembly election,” he said. The sharp division among the three parties, which are also constituent members of the High Level Political Committee that offers suggestions to the government on crucial political issues, indicates that resolving inter-party as well as intra-party disputes over the thorny issues will not be an easy task. While dissident political parties, including Mohan Baidya-led CPN-Maoist, Upendra Yadav"s Madhesi People"s Rights Forum and Ashok Rai"s Federal Socialist Party, among other fringe parties, have been demanding dissolution of the present government as well as HLPC, leaders from NC and UML are for seeking Regmi resignation as CJ as a middle way solution to bring the agitating parties on board the election process. nnnn