Oli, Dahal hold talks as parties mull electoral alliance

KATHMANDU: CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Communist Party (NCP) Coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal held a meeting in Kathmandu on Sunday.

This is the first one-on-one meeting between the two leftist leaders following the Gen Z protests of September 8 and 9, which ousted Oli from the government.

According to UML sources, the two leaders met at a private residence in Lalitpur at 9 am on Thursday. The meeting focused on contemporary political developments and the upcoming elections, the sources said.

The meeting between the two leaders is seen with great significance as leaders of the two parties are mulling over forming an electoral alliance for the House of Representatives elections scheduled for March 5.

The growing polarisation of alternative political forces under the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) has compelled traditional parties—the Nepali Congress, as well as the UML and the NCP—to rethink and recalibrate their electoral strategies.