Nepali Congress General Secretary Gururaj Ghimire on Election Defeat and Party Future

Kathmandu. The Nepali Congress suffered a humiliating defeat in the recently concluded House of Representatives elections. The Congress, which was the largest party in the previous election, won only 38 seats in total from the first-past-the-post and proportional representation categories. Following the Janji movement, the demand for restructuring political parties grew strongly, and the Congress also held a special general convention, electing a new central working committee under the leadership of Gagan Thapa.

In the election held immediately after that, Congress went into the polls with the slogan 'Change Congress, Change the Country'. However, it failed to achieve success in the election as expected. This is an edited excerpt from an interview conducted by Ratopati in its 'Warpaar' with Congress General Secretary Gururaj Ghimire, focusing on the results of the House of Representatives election and the internal turmoil within the Congress (the detailed video can be viewed here):

The election results are out, but the Nepali Congress's official stance has not yet been revealed. How do you view this result in your personal capacity and as the party's General Secretary?

Participating in a democratic process, accepting the resulting outcome is the primary duty of any political party. As far as the result of this election is concerned, it is unexpected, unimaginable, and unforeseen for us. Congress expected a majority in the election held under its own leadership, or at least believed it would become the largest party. But the result turned out differently than expected. We consider the people as the ultimate authority (Janardan) and respect this mandate. Congress has institutionally accepted the results of every election from 2015 till now, and we have done the same this time.

You called it 'unimaginable,' but isn't it possible that the people did not trust the 'changed leadership' and the slogan 'Change Congress, Change the Country' that you brought?

Let's understand it this way: we attempted a leadership change because we realized that the country could no longer function with the old working style. Through the special general convention, we brought forward a new generation. But what the people distrusted was not this new leadership, but rather the old tendency that has held the reins of the party and power for the past 35-36 years. We are currently paying the price for the indifference we showed regarding our priorities while running the government, service delivery, controlling corruption, and addressing the problems of the new generation. When we tried to correct these shortcomings from within the party, the leadership did not agree, resulting in the people warning us.

You changed the leadership through a special general convention, but the establishment faction alleges that you rushed things and insulted the old leadership?

Our effort was constitutional. When the possibility of a regular general convention faded, we chose the path of a special general convention according to the provisions of the statute. This cannot be called an insult. In a democracy, the majority must be respected. When the then leadership tried to move forward by violating the statute, we took steps to protect the statute. The insult was done by them, who took the extreme decision to even expel the incumbent elected General Secretary and Joint General Secretary from the party. We were in favor of dialogue and discussion, but they chose the path of action, disregarding dialogue. Therefore, this was not a rush or an insult, but rather a life-saving attempt to save the party.

Sher Bahadur Deuba went abroad during the election period and did not even go to vote. Is his action due to dissatisfaction with you all?

It is this Congress party and its millions of cadres who made Sher Bahadur Deuba who he is. It is truly regrettable that a person who has been Prime Minister five times and President twice was abroad and did not vote during the election. He should have been mindful of this. However, there is no involvement of our party colleagues in the destructive incident that occurred on the 24th. He himself was in a position to answer the questions raised during the governance of the state. We had condemned the attack. He must answer for his absence himself.

In a speech some time ago, you said, 'A single Balen has shown us all the 'Tori ko Phool' (a metaphor for being completely defeated/humiliated).' Has the current election result truly shown Congress the 'Tori ko Phool'?

I said that three years ago after seeing it. When political parties focus on the scramble for power rather than serving the people, alternative forces emerge. Although the questions raised by a metropolitan mayor sometimes seem anarchic, they are attacks based on the foundation of our weaknesses. We ourselves are responsible for the rise of Balen Shah or the 'Bell' (Rastriya Swatantra Party). We failed to end corruption, we failed to stop mismanagement. When we, the new generation within the party, raised these issues, the leadership showed no interest in listening. Now, all those weaknesses have piled up like a mountain and are crushing us.

Looking at the proportional representation list, nepotism and favoritism seem to dominate Congress again, don't they? Couldn't Gagan Thapa have stopped this?

The leadership did not involve us General Secretaries in preparing the proportional representation list. Even basic common sense was not used in preparing the list from the eight clusters. The Madhes region has been neglected, and there is no balance between geography and contribution. One faction has been placed in a single cluster. This list reflects the narrow mindset of the then leadership. The allegations against Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma are untrue because they were kept far away from this process. Regarding nepotism, some old leaders might have sought opportunities in the latter part of their lives, but this should not have been made a party policy.

How will Congress move forward now? Some people are demanding your resignation, saying the justification for the special general convention is over?

The issue of resignation is not relevant. The President has said he will resign on moral grounds, which is his high political character. But we came with the responsibility to hold the general convention. We will not flee. Now we will conduct a ruthless review. Immediate action will be taken against those who violated discipline during the election. We will cure the old disease of taking action only on the eve of elections.

Our main goal now is the 15th General Convention. We have 10 months left. We will work 18 hours a day to update the 870,000 active members. We will remove those who do not support the party in times of crisis or those who were forcibly made members and prepare a list of genuine cadres. We are determined to give new life to the party by completing the general convention by Bhadra.

What is your suggestion for the Rastriya Swatantra Party and the new government?

The people have placed great hope and trust in the Rastriya Swatantra Party. They have adopted the slogan, 'The old ones couldn't do it, we can.' They have a historic opportunity to make that slogan meaningful. If the government works according to the public sentiment, protects the constitution, and leads the country on the path of prosperity, we will offer constructive cooperation. But if the country starts moving towards political conflict or the wrong path again, we will play the role of a strong opposition.

But you don't have the necessary numbers to be a strong opposition, do you?

The role of the opposition is determined not by numbers, but by determination and issues. In 1980, the Bharatiya Janata Party had only two seats, but look where they are today? Therefore, the voice we raise and the issues of the people are more important than the numbers.

We should not forget how the two-thirds majority government fell in the past. We want to move forward by creating a positive environment. The country cannot withstand much conflict. The new forces should learn something from Congress's 80 years of experience, and we too must learn lessons from our mistakes.