Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal Saturday shot back at the Bhattarai-Baidya faction, indirectly describing the rival faction's activities as an attempt to 'finish' him.

"Late Girija Prasad Koirala had forewarned me when I met him at the hospital during his final days that people from with our party will try to finish me. He told me that there might be threat even to my life," Dahal said, addressing an interaction organised by Progressive Civil Society in the capital.

"Koirala had told me that the responsibility of peace and constitution are on my shoulders," Dahal added, alluding to the activities in the party to 'weaken' his leadership.

Maoist leaders close to Dahal have been saying that his proposal to concentrate on peace and constitution should be the main agenda for the long stalled central committee meeting, not the demands of Baidya-Bhattarai faction to finalise the distribution of responsibilities within the party.

They have even argued that the new alliance between the past rival's is aimed at weakening the agenda of peace and constitution.

"It will be unfortunate if Nepali people do not see sincere efforts to conclude the peace process and  constitution-drafting," Dahal said.

Dahal, however, claimed that the central committee meeting would sort out the internal dispute and that the party would go through the process of "transformation and unity".

"Our party will not split," he asserted, "I believe that we will be able to move through the process of transformation and unity."

The Maoist chairman also admitted he spoke too much in public and many times ended up creating controversy.

"Nowadays I've become very cautious while speaking," Dahal, who was not seen in public for several days in the wake of ongoing internal row, said."

His close aides including party secretary Post Bahadur Bogati, Barshaman Pun, Agni Sapkota and Janardan Sharma were present at the programme, but no leaders from Baidya-Bhattarai faction showed up. nepalnews.com