UCPN (Maoist) Vice-chairman Narayan Kaji Shrestha has claimed that he is not aware of the so called “gentlemen’s agreement” to appoint his party chairman, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, as the next prime minister.

“I don’t know any other pact besides the nine-point agreement signed a week ago at the PM’s residence,” Shrestha told reporters at his home on Thursday.

Recalling the understanding signed with the ruling CPN-UML last week that gave a new lease to life to the KP Sharma Oli-led government, he said the Maoists had once decided to replace the incumbent government after conclusion that it had failed to deliver as per their expectations.

Shrestha said their pressing concern was completion of the peace process and how the two transitional justice bodies would work as per the spirit of the peace accord signed in 2006. “We did not see satisfactory results particularly on the peace process, implementation of the constitution and reconstruction works. With the nine-point agreement, we hope the Oli government will keep its promise.”

Shrestha also said that there was no possibility of holding the elections in December since the local bodies will have to be restructured shortly as required by the new constitution.