At first glance, President Sher Bahadur Deuba and General Secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma are visible amidst the smoke of controversy hanging over the Nepali Congress.

But if we look at the puzzle, Krishna Prasad Sitaula is at the root of the controversy. Sitaula is the character who, while addressing the Central Working Committee meeting on Asoj 25, gradually immersed himself in the role of reactivating Deuba, who had withdrawn from active politics, from within the party (and there may be others from outside).

There are 'seven brothers' on one side of the ongoing controversy in the Congress. Among them, Gopalman Shrestha has reached the level of Gagan-Bishwo, who is currently leading the special general convention. Among the remaining six brothers, Sitaula seems to dominate Deuba. Due to his benevolent role, President Deuba could neither withdraw from active politics nor walk the path of a respectable exit. If the elderly President Deuba cannot get out of the clutches of his six brothers, including Sitaula, 23 years later, he alone will have to bear the burden of another disgraceful party division for the rest of his life and beyond.

Who is the obstacle to unity within the Congress now? On this question, the fingers of moderate leaders outside the establishment and within the establishment are pointed directly at Sitaula. Be it the debate from the regular general convention to the special general convention or the questions from the mandatory risks raised by General Secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma to the decision-making ability of President Sher Bahadur Deuba—the political knot within the Congress seems to be tied around Sitaula. Under the guise of appearing cheerful and cheerful when met in public life, Sitaula currently seems to be focused on the only mission of taking revenge on General Secretaries Thapa and Sharma. For that, he is using President Deuba.

Sitaula rose to the center of politics around 2058/059. His influence increased dramatically after the then President Girija Prasad Koirala brought him to his 'kitchen cabinet' from Jhapa. Before that, Koirala's kitchen cabinet included Arjun Narsingh KC, Khum Bahadur Khadka, Govinda Raj Joshi and Vijay Kumar Gachhadar under the name of AKGB. As long as Koirala was in their circle, Sitaula was not even allowed to enter. When discord started within 'AKGB', various scandals, cases and divisions arose, Sitaula entered the kitchen cabinet.

Sitaula also spent a lot of time using Koirala's influence to block Bishwaprakash Sharma from Jhapa from coming to the center. Until Sushil Koirala's death, he had a unique influence within the Congress. When the then President Sushil Koirala passed away, a dispute flared up within the group over who would inherit Koirala's legacy. In the 13th General Convention, a battle of succession broke out between President Ram Chandra Poudel and Sitaula. Due to the competition between the two, Sher Bahadur Deuba became the President and a third group emerged within the Congress.

At that time, General Secretary Gagan Thapa contested the election for the General Secretary for the first time from Sitaula's panel. Both Sitaula and Thapa were defeated. As long as Thapa remained with Sitaula, the third faction remained. When Thapa left Sitaula, Sitaula called Thapa a 'traitor'.

Thapa, who was engaged in politics with the goal of becoming the Prime Minister of the country and the President of the party within a certain period, could not ignore the flow of time. After leaving Sitaula, he contested the election against Shekhar Koirala and won the General Secretary post. Now there is a rift between Shekhar and Thapa. But Sitaula is still accusing Thapa of betrayal and is not allowing President Deuba to function. As a result, President Deuba has reached a point where he has to suffer humiliation in the latter half of his life in the Congress.

After the Gen-G movement, the Congress general secretaries brought changes in the party's operation and policy approach. But Sitaula was seen planning to keep the party as it is and take disciplinary action against the two general secretaries and expel them from the party. The central members within the establishment party - Ramesh Lekhak, Gyanendra Bahadur Karki, Head of the Publicity Department Min Bishwakarma, Nainsingh Mahar and others - are trying to find a way out for the party through a middle-of-the-road proposal. But according to the leaders of the establishment party, Sitaula is leading the six brothers and is constantly creating obstacles.

You don't have to go far. Even Sudhir Shiwakoti, a confidant who supported Sitaula for 52 years, left him at the last moment. At the inauguration of the special general convention on Sunday, he said, ‘I was with him until before the Gen-G movement, but after that I left after he moved forward with his old consciousness and feelings.’

The role of the other five brothers who were with him was also not seen in favor of party unity. But Sitaula was seen in the main role of not allowing President Deuba to make an easy decision. ‘Sitaula’s stubbornness from the beginning that the general secretaries should leave, but not go along with their plans has brought us to this point,’ said a leader from the establishment side. ‘After the Gen-G movement, he should have addressed the regular general convention schedule in the first central working committee meeting, but it was mainly stopped due to pressure from Sitaula and six other brothers. Over time, the controversy created by that led to the current state of the Congress.'