Jwala Singh, leader of the breakaway Democratic Terai Liberation Front, also demanded the people of the southern plains region called Terai be allowed to run the army, police and the local administration of the region bordering India.

"Our Front is ready for talks with the seven-party government and the Maoists in the presence of the United Nations if a written proposal is made and approved by parliament," Singh said in a statement late on Saturday.

The offer came a week after Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala said he was ready for talks with the insurgents.

Singh's group broke away from the main Maoist rebels in 2004 and now operates in parts of the Terai. It says people of the region are not given a proper share of jobs or allocation of funds.

Complicating matters, the group split into two factions last year and both factions say they are separately fighting for the rights of people in the area.

The main Maoist group and the multi-party government signed a landmark peace deal in November declaring an end to a decade-old conflict that has killed more than 13,000 people.