KATHMANDU: The widely-awaited talks billed as ‘decisive’ between Prime Minister KP Oli and Nepal Communist Party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has ended.

Party sources said the two top guns will meet again on Monday morning before the scheduled meeting of the Standing Committee.

It has been learned that Oli and Dahal have agreed to seek options to forge consensus on thorny issues in tomorrow’s meeting.

Amidst speculation that the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) is heading towards a split, a ‘decisive’ meeting between NCP Chairmen Oli and Dahal ‘Prachanda’ was held at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar this morning.

The meeting dubbed as a last-ditch effort to stop the party split had begun at around 12 noon.

Two leaders each from two factions—Bishnu Poudel and Shankar Pokharel from Oli faction and Barshaman Pun and Janardan Sharma from Dahal camp— were also present at the meeting.

Earlier today, disgruntled NCP leaders held consultation with President Bidhya Devi Bhandari at Shital Niwas.

Dismissing allegations that they were planning to impeach President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, NCP leaders had clarified with the later that they had no such intention.

“The allegations are totally baseless,” sources quoted the leaders, who had reached the President’s Office this morning to hold consultations with the President, as saying.

They told President Bhandari that the rumor was aimed at defaming the leaders and the NCP party as a whole, sources said.

Prime Minister KP Oli had on Saturday night, alleged the dissident leaders of conspiring to impeach the President and oust the Prime Minister.

NCP Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, Jhalanath Khanal and Spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha had reached Shital Niwas, the Office of the President, to clarify issue as well as to discuss the current political developments.

The two camps – PM Oli and Dahal, Nepal and Khanal – are at loggerheads in the last few weeks over some serious issues, particularly after PM Oli alleged the dissident faction of dancing to the tune of India to oust him.

Meanwhile, the Standing Committee meeting of the party will resume on Monday to thrash out the differences.

Speculations are rife that PM Oli is covertly working out plans to split the party. The meeting between PM Oli and Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba held last Wednesday is seen with suspicion as observers note that the Prime Minister can to any extent, including forming a coalition with the NC to form a new government under his leadership.

The meeting of the two dissenting factions scheduled for Saturday could not take place as the top leaders, who were trying to find a way out by postponing the ongoing standing committee meeting from Thursday, were active in flexing muscles rather than resolving the dispute.