Internal strife persists within Nepali Congress as leadership deadlock continues

Kathmandu. The internal dispute within the Nepali Congress, which reached a peak in the last week of Poush, remains unresolved. The conflict intensified after General Secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma organized a special general convention between Poush 27 and 30, despite disagreements from then-President Sher Bahadur Deuba and leader Dr. Shekhar Koirala.

Following the special general convention, which elected Thapa as President and Sharma as Vice President, a state of communication breakdown has persisted between the top leaders of the two factions.

After the Election Commission granted legitimacy to the special general convention on Magh 2, the Deuba-Koirala faction approached the Supreme Court demanding recognition. The writ petition filed by them remains sub-judice in the Supreme Court.

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Leaders from both sides state they will accept the Supreme Court's verdict. However, analysts suggest that without dialogue, the party may not remain united regardless of the court's decision.

Leader Dr. Shekhar Koirala held a meeting with his faction's leaders last Tuesday in Kathmandu, stating that it would be difficult to keep the party united regardless of the court's ruling, and assigned specific leaders to hold talks with both sides. The meeting at Koirala's secretariat in Bishalnagar assigned leaders Dr. Minendra Rijal and Prof. Dr. Govinda Pokharel to negotiate with the outgoing establishment, and former Joint General Secretaries Badri Pandey and Jeevan Pariyar to negotiate with the establishment faction.

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General Secretary Pradeep Paudel stated that they are making efforts to bring everyone together until the general convention. "We have brought the schedule for the party's 15th General Convention and have started the implementation process. The party will be united through the convention," General Secretary Paudel told Ratopati. "We are confident that we will have the guidance and support of our seniors to keep the party united and move forward."

He noted that while there is dialogue to unify the party, a consensus has not yet been reached. "We are holding talks and dialogues at various levels and through various mediums to move forward with a united party, but no results have emerged yet," Paudel said.

Although General Secretary Paudel claims talks are ongoing, the old establishment does not acknowledge that any dialogue has taken place.

Leaders from both sides say that formal dialogue and a meeting point within the party will not be found until the Supreme Court issues a verdict on the legitimacy issue. However, no one wants to speak on this matter officially.

The Deuba-Koirala faction maintains that efforts for unity must be made in the Congress, which has been mired in controversy since the special general convention. They argue that President Thapa himself must propose a formula that respects everyone for the sake of unity.

Leader Dr. Minendra Rijal stated that he spoke with Thapa, who became President through the special general convention, for party unity on an individual basis, not because he was assigned by anyone. "I spoke with Thapa on the evening of Chaitra 18 for unity on an individual basis, not because someone assigned me," Dr. Rijal told Ratopati. "There was a good conversation with him about unity, but there has been no follow-up conversation since then. I learned that Thapa and leader Dr. Shekhar Koirala spoke after my conversation. Since then, there has been no further progress."

Dr. Rijal also mentioned that he informed leader Dr. Shekhar and Purna Bahadur Khadka about his conversation with Thapa. He stated that Thapa told him he would talk to Khadka and Dr. Koirala.

"During our conversation, Thapa told me he would talk to leaders Purna-ji and Shekhar-ji," Dr. Rijal said. "I know there was a general conversation with Shekhar-ji over the phone, but I have no information on whether he spoke with Purna-ji."

Dr. Rijal had informed the office bearers and members of the central committee of the Deuba-Koirala faction, which met in Kathmandu on Chaitra 17 and 18, that he would talk to Thapa to initiate dialogue within the party. In line with that view, Dr. Rijal informed the leaders about his conversation with Thapa.

He also stated that he is in favor of resolving the internal party dispute through the efforts of the leaders themselves and that he has been making efforts for it. "My view is that the dispute within the party should be resolved through our own efforts, not by a court verdict, and the party should be kept united. I am making efforts for that," Dr. Rijal said.

Central member of the Deuba-led working committee, Laxmi Khatiwada, said she is not aware of any dialogue between the top-level leaders of the establishment and the Deuba faction to resolve the party's dispute. "I am not aware of any top-level talks to resolve the dispute since the special general convention. The leaders have not briefed us about any dialogue," leader Khatiwada told Ratopati.

Regarding unity and dialogue, she hinted at President Gagan Thapa, saying that the "pot" (leadership) must heat up first. "The pot must heat up first for dialogue and unity. I haven't felt it heating up yet," Khatiwada said. "If only the handle heats up, it will only burn." Khatiwada mentioned that there is strong pressure at the public and worker levels for the party to unite. She said that they are discussing this at the second and third levels, but no conclusion has been reached.