NUP Chairperson Ranjita Shrestha removed from party

KATHMANDU: Ranjita Shrestha, chairperson of the Nagarik Unmukti Party (NUP), has been dismissed from her position.

A National Gathering of the party’s founding Central Committee members held in Kathmandu on Wednesday decided to remove Shrestha from the party’s general membership.

The party’s Disciplinary Committee had earlier proposed to dismiss Shrestha from both the chairpersonship and general membership. The National Gathering approved the committee’s recommendation, said Ramlal Dangoura Tharu, coordinator of NUP’s Disciplinary Committee.

“Earlier, the party had sought clarification from the chairperson based on a decision taken by the majority of Central Committee members. However, she neither responded nor participated in the meeting,” Tharu said. “Following that, the National Gathering approved the Disciplinary Committee’s proposal to remove her from the position.”

He added that the National Gathering will convene again at 11 am on Thursday to select the new chairperson.

Tharu also said that the meeting decided to send an updated list of 201 Central Committee members, who were unanimously selected at the party’s first convention in Tikapur, to the Election Commission.

Party patron Resham Chaudhary, who was present at the gathering, said Shrestha’s decision to appoint an Acting Chairperson was against the party statute. He added that such a decision should have been made through discussion in the central committee.

When the Central Committee sought clarification from her, Shrestha temporarily stepped down from her position as the chairperson, citing health reasons and named Shiva Bastola of Kaski as the Acting Chairperson.

Shrestha has also been linked to a bribery case involving land dealings in Pokhara. She is under investigation by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) in connection with the case.

An audio recording linked to the alleged bribery deal with then Minister of Federal Affairs and General Administration Rajkumar Gupta also reportedly includes her voice.

Shrestha, however, has denied any involvement in the matter.