Kathmandu: "Nepal's Interim Constitution would be promulgated by mid-January, which would pave the way for a five-member Maoist team to join the interim Government by the month end", a senior Nepalese minister said today.

"Once the UN monitors arrive on January 7, it will take them one week to settle things and after January 15 the monitoring of arms and the armies will start paving way for promulgation of the Interim Constitution," Minister for Tourism and Civil Aviation and a member of the government negotiating team with the rebels, Pradip Gyawali told sources.

The Government has said it would not promulgate the interim statute unless the arms management process starts.

Gyawali said the constitution will be submitted to the House of Representatives (HOR), which will endorse it after holding thorough discussions and the day it is promulgated, the HOR will also be dissolved, which will be followed by formation of a 330-member Interim Parliament, in which the Maoists will have 73 seats, he said.

"Tentatively by January 22-23, a five-member Maoist team headed by rebel spokesman Krishna Bahadur Mahara would join the interim government," he said. However, the portfolios of the Maoist ministry are yet to be decided, he said.

The current 19-member cabinet headed by G.P. Koirala will be expanded to 23-25 when the rebels join, he said.

The senior minister also said that reactionary forces, including the palace may be engaged in hatching a conspiracy to derail the peace process.

"Various unrests are going on in Nepal almost daily to derail the peace process and obstruct the process of democratization," he said.