KATHMANDU: Medical entrepreneur and campaigner Durga Prasai has said he welcomes the government’s official invitation for talks, while reiterating his claim that Nepal is being systematically weakened under a “foreign grand design.”

Speaking during an editors’ interaction and through social media posts, Prasai said his movement seeks to protect the nation, its citizens, and traditional values from what he described as a corrupt political and financial system.

Prasai, who leads the ‘National Campaign for the Protection of Nation, Nationality, Religion, Culture, and Citizens,’ said the government’s move to initiate talks reflects “a sense of responsibility that the previous Oli administration never showed.”

He added, “If the government has officially called us for dialogue, we welcome it. But the country now needs a solution that genuinely safeguards the nation and its people.”

During Sunday’s interaction, Prasai accused foreign powers of conspiring to erode Nepal’s sovereignty by influencing the political establishment and economic structures.

He said the abolition of the monarchy and Hindu state was part of that plan. “Why did Girija Prasad Koirala keep referring to a ‘grand design’? Now it’s clear—foreign interests wanted Nepal’s identity dismantled,” he remarked.

Defending his campaign against what he calls exploitative banking practices, Prasai presented documents showing his businesses are not blacklisted and regularly pay taxes and electricity bills.

He said his movement is not about avoiding bank dues but about resisting “lootocracy.” “Banks promise 7 percent interest but charge up to 17 percent, trapping citizens in debt. Our protest forced them to lower rates to 6 percent, which helped all Nepalis,” he claimed.

Prasai also directed criticism at a handful of powerful business groups, accusing them of monopolizing wealth and influence. He cited recent fires at Singha Durbar and the Supreme Court as symbols of a “collapsing system.”

While thanking Kathmandu Mayor Balen Shah for preventing his detention during recent protests, he also questioned city authorities’ priorities, saying firefighters should have been deployed to control the blaze instead of serving water to demonstrators.

Prasai said his campaign would continue peacefully, focusing on financial reform, national unity, and defending Nepal’s sovereignty.

“Talks are welcome,” he said, “but the people expect results that will save both the nation and its citizens.”