Nepal Communist Party Central Coordination Committee Meeting Adjourned Until Baisakh 3

Kathmandu. The Central Coordination Committee meeting of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) has been adjourned after a week of deliberations. Following the party's unexpected defeat in the elections held in Falgun, coordinator Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' called the first meeting of the coordination committee on Chaitra 19. During the meeting, Prachanda presented a 10-page report on the election review, and the meeting was adjourned for three days for members to study it. From Chaitra 23, a six-day debate was held on the coordinator's report at the central office in Parisdanda. The meeting, which was scheduled to conclude on Saturday, has been adjourned again.

Leader Jagannath Khatiwada informed that the meeting has been adjourned until Baisakh 3, 2083. According to Khatiwada, since the leaders have finished speaking, a decision will be reached on Baisakh 3 or 4.

'It was said that the decision would be made public before the New Year. However, as the meeting has been extended, the meeting to be held on Baisakh 3 or 4 will make the decision,' he told Ratopati.

He stated that the coordination committee meeting could result in decisions regarding the announcement of the general convention date, the formation of the central working committee, the division of labor and responsibilities among leaders, and the completion of the unification process.

'Agendas such as completing party unification, dividing work, and announcing the date of the general convention have been presented in the meeting. The coordinator and co-coordinator will announce the decision in the next meeting,' Khatiwada said.

He mentioned that although the meeting discussed the election results from various angles, no conclusion was reached. Khatiwada informed that members expressed their views on party transformation and leadership transfer.

'The debate is centered on whether the party should go to the general convention at once by establishing a method without completing the unification, or whether it should complete the unification down to the ward level and then prepare for the general convention,' he said. 'Specifically, there was more discussion about the election results. The inability to form a socialist front including the UML before the election, and the shifting alliances between UML-Maoist, Congress-Maoist-Unified Socialist, and UML-Maoist-Unified Socialist added to public frustration. We unified the party at the center, but we could not complete the unification emotionally down to the ward level. There was a debate from many such angles.'

Another leader, Ganga Narayan Shrestha, said that there was more debate from ideological and theoretical angles in the meeting. Shrestha informed that although all leaders expressed their views on election review, party weaknesses, and future tasks, no conclusion was reached.

'Different opinions have emerged on whether to dissolve the existing central committee and form a general convention organizing committee or to complete the party unification before going to the general convention. Different views have also emerged regarding the modality of unification down to the lower levels, division of labor, and future programs. Based on all these opinions, the coordinator will announce the decision,' he said.

Prachanda's report mentions holding the general convention within six months and completing conventions from the municipal to the ward level. Leader Prakash Jwala informed that 40 members expressed their views orally and two in writing on the coordinator's report. According to Jwala, Krishna Bahadur Mahara and Ranjita Shrestha submitted written opinions due to illness, while leader Bhim Rawal gave general remarks without commenting on the report. He said that the meeting on Baisakh 3 could determine the division of labor for leaders, the formation of the secretariat, and the responsibilities of the coordination committee members.

'Since the central working committee has not been completed, there is no question of assigning responsibilities. The central secretariat may be formed and the members of the coordination committee may get responsibilities,' he said. 'Decisions may come regarding setting the date of the general convention, completing party unification, and adjusting the sister organizations.'

On Kartik 19, the Nepal Communist Party was formed by merging 10 leftist components, including the former CPN (Maoist Center) and the Unified Socialist. By the time of the election, it had grown to 25 components. Except for appointing Prachanda as coordinator and Madhav Kumar Nepal as co-coordinator, the division of labor among leaders has not been done. The central committee has been made 2,499 members. According to the statute, a 45-member coordination committee consisting of the main leaders of the unified components has been formed. Similarly, the central working committee and the central secretariat have not been formed. The statute provides for a 601-member central working committee. Leader Jwala informed that the secretariat will have 125 members.