NC fails to reach consensus on general convention

KATHMANDU: Internal rifts within rival factions of the Nepali Congress (NC) are deepening due to the party’s failure to forge a consensus on the schedule for its upcoming General Convention.

Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka had postponed the ongoing Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting for two days in an effort to forge a consensus. He held discussions with leaders from both factions over the past two days. However, his attempts proved unsuccessful. The meeting is now set to resume at 1 pm on Tuesday, according to party leaders.

There have been calls for leadership in the NC after the Gen Z protests of September  8 and 9. NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba, who was physically assaulted during the protests, gave up his active role in the party, naming his trusted lieutenant Purna Bahadur Khakda as the Acting President. Deuba is currently in Singapore for treatment.

The latest dispute began after General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa refused to attend the CWC meeting unless he was allowed to present the proposed timeline for the General Convention. Thapa, along with fellow General Secretary Bishwa Prakash Sharma and senior leader Dr Shekhar Koirala—who heads the party’s anti-establishment faction—has been pressing for the convention to be held within the timeframe stipulated in the party statute, i.e., ahead of the March 5 election.

General Secretary Thapa is reportedly preparing to propose holding the General Convention from December 13 to 15. However, Acting President Khadka has not yet authorized him to table the proposal. He boycotted the Central Working Committee earlier after he was refused permission to table the timeline for the general convention.

Leaders close to Deuba, however, are insisting that the general convention can be held only after the elections. Leaders like Prakash Sharan Mahat, Bimalendra Nidhi, Prakash Man Singh, Bijay Kumar Gachchadar and Shashank Koirala, met separately in New Baneshwar on Monday.  After the meeting, they said that the convention could be scheduled for January if the party decides not to participate in those elections

The term of the NC’s current Central Working Committee is set to expire in mid-December.