This combo photo shows UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, Vice Chairperson Bishnu Paudel and General Secretary Shankar Pokharel.
BUTWAL: The selection of delegates for the CPN-UML’s 11th General Convention in Lumbini Province has revealed a ‘silent’ indication of leadership change.
With Senior Vice-Chairperson Ishwar Pokharel declaring his intention to contest for party leadership, quiet lobbying in his favour had been underway. However, his supporters did not openly mobilize during the delegate elections.
According to CPN-UML Lumbini Province Chairperson Radha Krishna Kandel, delegates were chosen either through a consensus or a competitive election process across the 12 districts of Lumbini Province. Representatives were selected unopposed in Rukum East, Pyuthan, Bardiya, Kapilvastu and Gulmi, while voting was held in Rupandehi, Nawalparasi West, Kapilvastu and Palpa.
Although it was said that delegates were selected on a consensus basis in Dang and Banke, the result is disputed.
“Some procedural errors were seen in the process. In some places, there may have been factional differences,” Chairperson Kandel said. “Overall, the delegate selection process in Lumbini has concluded successfully.”
According to Kandel, 190 convention delegates have been chosen from Lumbini, excluding those already serving on the central organising committee.
Of the 190 delegates, 80 were selected under the open category, 53 under the women’s quota, 26 under the youth quota, 19 from the Dalit category, seven from the laborer category, and five from the province committee.
UML members were clearly divided into camps led by Vice-Chairperson Bishnu Paudel and General Secretary Shankar Pokharel. According to a UML leader, Paudel and Pokharel have nearly an equal number of convention delegates. Nawalparasi West, Arghakhanchi, and Kapilvastu are considered strongholds of Shankar Pokharel, while Rupandehi, Palpa, and Gulmi lean towards Paudel. In Dang, Banke, Bardiya, Rukum, Rolpa, and Pyuthan, both factions appear evenly balanced.
So far, Vice-chairperson Bishn Prasad Paudel appears to be aligned with Chairperson KP Shrama Oli. However, if he chooses to support Senior Vice-Chairperson Pokharel in the general convention, Lumbini’s delegate composition could significantly influence the leadership contest.
In Rupandehi, the home district of Vice-Chairperson Bishnu Paudel and Secretary Chhabilal Bishwakarma, most delegates have been selected from Paudel’s camp. Of the five constituencies in Rupandehi, Constituencies 1, 2, and 4 selected delegates through elections, while Constituencies 3 and 5 finalized names on a consensus basis.
From Dang, the home district of General Secretary Pokharel, 23 delegates were selected on a consensus basis, according to the party’s district secretary Surya Bahadur Dangi. Thirteen have been selected from the open category, seven from the women’s category, and three from the Dalit quota. Leaders of the rival faction, however, have said the selection process is disputed.
The CPN-UML has 82,135 registered members in Lumbini Province. Only 50% of them participated in the voting process.
