Gajurel challenges decision to expel him from NCP

KATHMANDU: The Nepali Communist Party (NCP) leader Haribol Gajurel has objected to the party’s decision to take disciplinary action against him.

Talking to Himal Press a day after NCP Coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal ordered expulsion of Gajurel and six other leaders for fielding rebel candidacy against the party’s official candidates for the upcoming House of Representatives elections, Gajurel said the action was unjust and procedurally flawed.

He claimed that the party did not seek a formal explanation before expelling him. “Disciplinary action should follow a request for clarification. That did not happen,” he said.

The NCP has accused Gajurel of acting as a proposer for Maheshwar Dahal, who filed a rebel candidacy against NCP’s official candidate Rajan Dahal in Sindhuli–2.

Gajurel, a former Maoist Centre general secretary and Dahal’s former chief political adviser, argued that the fault lay with the party leadership. He said he had repeatedly urged Prachanda not to award the ticket to Rajan Dahal and warned that the decision would create internal conflict.

Denying that personal ambition drove his actions, Gajurel said he had no interest in contesting the election and insisted his stand was taken “for the party’s unity and reform.” He also rejected speculation that he would join another political force, saying the dispute could still be resolved if the party revised its candidate choice in Sindhuli.