Kathmandu: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's advice to Nepal's warring political parties on the Constitution-making process was today criticised by the media here which termed it as “breaching of diplomatic norms”.
Critical comments appeared in some of Nepal's national newspapers regarding Modi's advice to political parties on the long-delayed drafting of the country's constitution.
During his bilateral engagements with Nepalese political leaders, Modi had urged them to forge consensus to draft the constitution and asked them not to delay the process and meet the January 22 deadline.
“The Prime Minister's (Modi's) advice to forge consensus among political parties to write a constitution seems to be directed against the ruling alliances, Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, which are making attempts to write the statute through majority votes,” the Kantipur national daily said in an editorial.
Modi's call for promulgating the constitution within the January 22 deadline seems to be another pressure tactic against the opposition parties including the Unified CPN-Maoist and the Madhesi parties, the daily said.
Modi had advised political parties not to make decision on the basis of majority, which undermines the procedure specified in Nepal's Interim Constitution, the daily said, terming it as an attempt to breach diplomatic norms.
The UCPN-Maoist-led alliance, which is against adopting democratic procedure in writing the Constitution, has been encouraged by Modi's remarks, according to another national daily Nagarik.
However, it is true that the Constitution should be acceptable to all sides as prescribed by Modi, the daily admitted in its editorial.
The talks initiated by Modi with the leaders of various political parties in Nepal may be termed as the beginning of a new kind of diplomacy of the southern neighbour, adds the daily.
Modi seems to have shown more concern for the internal politics of Nepal this time as compared to what he had done during his first visit to the country, it said.
