Leaders attending the press meet organized by the Bagmati Province Committee of Nepali Congress on Friday.
KATHMANDU: Nepali Congress (NC) Bagmati Province Committee is convening its inaugural general convention in Kathmandu on Saturday as internal disagreements over the hierarchy of leaders heighten in the party. Similar to other provinces, NC leaders are at odds over who should be the senior-most leader after party President Sher Bahadur Deuba.
Indra Bahadur Baniya, the Chairman of the Bagmati Pradesh Committee of NC, said in a press meet on Friday that the party has not formally decided on the senior leader like in the past. “Therefore, there is no need to unnecessarily worry about the hierarchy of leaders. We will adhere to the hierarchy outlined on the party’s website,” he added.
As per the NC website, Vice President Purna Bahadur Khadka holds the second position in the hierarchy of leaders. Dr. Shekhar Koirala, who conceded defeat to Deuba in the 14th General Convention for the post of president, was designated as the senior-most leader after Deuba in the general conventions of Lumbini and Gandaki provincial committees of the party. He is 25th in the party hierarchy, according to the party’s website.
Dr. Koirala chose to abstain from attending the 1st general convention of the Madhesh Province Committee held on Thursday after learning that he would not be granted the status of the senior-most leader in the party after Deuba. Another NC leader, former Vice President Bimalendra Nidhi, declined to take his seat on the stage, expressing dissatisfaction with the hierarchy of leaders.
As the hierarchy issue intensifies within the party, all eyes are on how the Bagmati Province Committee will address the matter.
Referring to Dr. Koirala, Baniya said in the press conference that the outcome of the election and the number of votes secured do not matter. “In the past, the party made a formal decision regarding the ‘senior leader’, and all party members followed it. This time, no such decision has been taken,” Baniya explained.
With both Vice President Khadka and Dr. Koirala vying for the position of the senior-most leader in the party after Deuba, they are boycotting programs attended by each other. As a result, the Bagmati Province Committee has not extended an invitation to Dr. Koirala.
“We are currently in Biratnagar. We have not received an invitation for the general convention of the Bagmati Province Committee scheduled for Saturday,” said Dinesh Thapaliya, the personal secretary to Dr Koirala.
On the other hand, Khadka left for Surkhet on Friday to ensure that he could return to Kathmandu on time to attend the general convention of the Bagmati Province Committee.
The 1st general convention of the Bagmati Province Committee of NC will see the participation of over 1,100 delegates. This includes 782 delegates from 66 federal constituencies in 13 districts of Bagmati Province, members of the House of Representatives from Bagmati Province, members of the Bagmati Province Assembly, chairpersons of federal constitutional committees of 13 districts, elected chiefs and deputy chiefs of different local units, and chairpersons of municipal committees of the party.
