Nepal's Maoists prepare for huge anti-government demo

KATHMANDU, May 1, (AFP) -Tens of thousands of Maoists massed in the streets of Nepal's capital Kathmandu on Saturday for a huge protest to force the embattled government to quit.

Security was on high alert amid fears the demonstration could lead to fresh turmoil for the impoverished Himalayan nation, which is still recovering from a deadly civil war.

Maoist activists and supporters shout anti-government slogans during May Day celebrations in . REUTERS.

Riot police were posted at all major city intersections and at least 15,000 security personnel were being deployed to avert violence, police spokesman Bigyan Raj Sharma said.

Parts of the city were a sea of red flags waved by demonstrators who chanted: “Dissolve this puppet government and set up a national government.”The Maoist party, which has the largest number of seats in parliament, is demanding the ruling coalition be replaced by a new, Maoist-led administration and said it expected half a million people to throng the city's streets.

“The purpose of this demonstration is to pressure the government to resign and have a national government formed under our leadership,” Baburam Bhattarai, second in command of the Maoist party, said ahead of mass rally.

A previous Maoist government fell in March 2009 after the president overruled its decision to sack the head of the army. Since then, Maoists have staged regular protests, though Saturday's rally was set to be the biggest.

“This is a very dangerous moment. The Maoists have mobilised their people in an unprecedented scale,” political commentator Prashant Jha told AFP.

If their demands are ignored, Maoist leader Pushpa Kamal Dahal -- also known as Prachanda -- has said they will begin an indefinite nationwide strike from Sunday.

At the same time as demonstrators were massing for the rally, the Maoists were meeting representatives of other major parties to try to break the political impasse.

Reports of Maoists taking part in military-style training and carrying weapons in the run-up to the rally stoked tensions in the capital.