The Business Advisory Committee ((BAC) of the parliament has given April 18 deadline (Baisakh 5) to the concerned bodies under the Constituent Assembly to resolve the dispute on issues concerning the new constitution.

A meeting of the BAC held in the presence of the senior leaders of the major parties on Thursday extended the deadline for the last time. As per the decision, voting will be conducted on the disputed subjects if they were not resolved by April 18.

The sub-committee under the constitutional committee of the CA is yet to forge agreement on four key subjects - restructuring of the state, form of governance, electoral system and judicial system.

In the meeting of the House panel, CA chairperson Subash Nemwang urged the leaders to set aside their differences and accelerate the constitution drafting process as the May 27 deadline is fast approaching.

Speaking after the BAC meeting, leaders expressed commitment to settle the disputes within April 18.

"The three parties had already agreed to find consensus by April 12. The disputes will certainly be resolved within the deadline," Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who heads the sub-committee, said. He said the inability of the political parties to forge consensus on time was ‘regrettable’.

Nepali Congress parliamentary leader Ram Chandra Poudel said the first and complete draft of the constitution would be submitted to the CA on April 28, one month before the CA's tenure comes to an end. nepalnews.com