KATHMANDU, Nepal, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- The alliance between his party and the Maoists is not a "left alliance" but a democratic one, Nepal's new prime minister, Jhalanath Khanal, said Sunday.
"This is not a left alliance. It is a democratic alliance for timely statute and completion of the ongoing peace process," Nepalnews.com quote Khanal as saying after being sworn in.
Members of the Himalayan republic's Parliament last week picked Khanal, 61, chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (United Marxist-Leninist), as prime minister after 16 failed attempts but only after the country's prominent Maoist leader, Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachanda," withdrew in his favor in a race that included two other contestants.
Prachanda's Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the largest in Parliament, had waged a 10-year-long battle that brought down Nepal's 242-year-old monarchy in 2006.
Khanal's immediate challenge would be to convince the Nepali Congress, the second largest party, to join the government to complete the peace process and draft a new constitution by the May 28 deadline.
After assuming office Sunday, Khanal asked senior civil servants to remain dedicated in serving the people and focus on transparency and democratic practices, Nepal news reported.
Separately, a spokesman for the Nepali Congress said the Maoist-UML coalition would be detrimental to the peace process, the report said.
