NC expels Gagan, Bishwa for five years

KATHMANDU: The Nepali Congress has sacked General Secretaries Gagan Kumar Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma, and Joint General Secretary Farmullah Mansoor, among other leaders, for five years.

The decision was made by a Central Working Committee meeting held at the party’s central office in Sanepa, according to Central Working Committee member Meenakshi Jha.

Party leaders said disciplinary action was taken against them for calling a special general convention by bypassing the party’s official process.

Min Bishwakarma, chief of the party’s Publicity Department, said after the meeting that the meeting concluded that the special general convention harmed the party’s ability to remain united to successfully conduct the House of Representatives election scheduled for March 5. “The meeting concluded that disciplinary rules had been violated and decided to take action against General Secretaries Thapa and Sharma, as well as Joint General Secretary Mansoor. A decision has been made to expel them from the party for five years,” he added.

Similarly, the meeting decided to urge those who had distanced themselves from the party’s establishment faction during the special general convention to return to the party’s mainstream.

The Central Working Committee made the decision after talks between party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, and General Secretaries Gagan Kumar Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma to resolve the dispute failed on Wednesday morning.

Meanwhile, the special general convention, currently underway at Bhrikuti Mandap, is scheduled to vote to elect a new leadership at 8 pm on Monday.