The main opposition CPN-UML has urged neighbours and international friends not to interfere in Nepal’s internal affairs.

“We appeal to our neighbours and international friends not to take sides in Nepal’s internal matters,” reads a press statement issued by UML Secretary Yogesh Bhattarai after the party’s standing committee meeting on Monday.

The UML’s “appeal” comes a day after India’s statement that registration of a constitution amendment bill in Nepal “is a positive step” and two days after Indian Ambassador Ranjit Rae’s lunch meeting with top leaders of the Madhes-based parties.

The UML has vehemently opposed the amendment bill, saying it is against national interest and that the move was taken at the behest of external forces.

Monday’s standing committee meeting of the main opposition concluded that India’s statement on amendment bill, its [undue] concerns and its officials’ activities “are against diplomatic norms”.

Indian Ambassador Rae had on Saturday invited top leaders of the Samyutka Loktantrik Madhesi Morcha for lunch meeting and advised them to accept the amendment bill registered by the government. The Morcha, at whose insistence the bill was registered, has refused to take ownership of the bill.

The UML has said it would like to urge Nepal’s international friends and neighbours “not to show unnecessary interest” in the country’s internal affairs. Political parties in Nepal are capable of resolving the problems on their own, reads the statement, adding that the country only expects world’s best wishes.

The meeting held at party Chairman KP Sharma Oli’s residence in Balkot also decided to continue their protests in the streets and Parliament. The party has decided to intensify demonstrations in Province 5, launch protests in Kathmandu and expand them across the country.

The meeting also decided to launch campaigns along the southern plains to “inform the Madhesi people about the conspiracies that are being hatched against them”.

Earlier on Monday, UML’s student wing organised a sit-in near the Embassy of India in Lainchaur, accusing India of interfering in Nepal’s internal matters. The UML has also taken serious exception to statements made by leaders of the governing parties, saying they “intend to incite communal violence and fuel polarisation”.

Stating that the amendment bill is against national interest, the main opposition has urged the government to withdraw it and seek solution to all the crises through dialogue and consensus and lead the country towards elections.

Put amendment bill on hold: RPP

The Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) has demanded that the constitution amendment bill registered by the government on November 29 be put on hold so that negotiations with disgruntled parties can be started afresh. 

 The RPP, the fourth largest party in Parliament with 37 seats, has said it is illogical to take the amendment bill forward without bringing the opposition and Madhesi parties on board.

In a statement issued after its Central Executive Committee meeting, the party has taken exception to the government move of registering the amendment bill without holding proper consultation. “The party, however, is for addressing the genuine concerns of the Madhes-based parties and other forces,” it said.

Buddhiman Tamang, a member of the party’s Central Executive Committee, said the ongoing protests in the western districts cannot be ignored in the name of amending the constitution.

The RPP has also objected to the act of opposition parties including the CPN-UML of obstructing the House proceedings, saying that solution should be sought from Parliament.