Maoist chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has said the journey that began in New Delhi in 2005 has come to an end with the recent agreement on integration of the Maoist combatants.

“This [agreement on peace process] is a matter of pride, and a happy moment. As the chairman of the party which led the process, I feel I got an opportunity to fulfil my responsibility. The journey that began in Delhi with the 12-point agreement has now arrived at a conclusion,” Dahal said in an interview to The Hindu, an Indian English daily.

Asked if he acted out of compulsion while agreeing to hand over the combatants and the cantonments, he said, “I felt I had to take a bold decision and conclude the process. If I was under compulsion, I could have said the Nepali Congress (NC) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) did not agree to integration, that they tried to stir up trouble in the cantonments, and that we should get ready for a movement.”

Reacting to the Mohan Baidya faction’s statement that the PLA handover was a surrender, the Maoist chairman said, “I don't see it as surrender at all. A rebel army is integrating into the NA; this is a matter of pride. A little while ago, Kiranji had come home. He said, “you have given up everything.” I said, “I haven't left anything, this is transformation.” I have learnt from negative experiences of communist history, and we came to the peace process and competitive politics as a matter of commitment — not out of tactics. I told him taking your path would lead us towards the situation of either Myanmar's Karen rebels, or communists in Malay, or more recently like those in Peru."

Dahal also said the peace process and the election to the Constituent Assembly would not have been possible without India’s “active support”. “Saying that the 12-point understanding was signed in Delhi means that there was India's active support — otherwise it was not possible. CA elections would not have been possible. There could have been problems with the declaration of a republic. Now also, to take peace and the constitution to a logical conclusion, without Indian support, it will be very complex and difficult.”

Dahal, who claimed that he was not interested for any official position right now, said that since the peace process had moved forward a national unity government would be formed and that his party wanted such a government under Baburam Bhattarai.

"On the day of constitution promulgation itself, we do not have any objection to even an NC-led government,” said he. nepalnews.com