The dispute within the Nepali Congress over the issue of the party's general convention is escalating. Due to the dispute, the then largest party in the parliament has started losing ground even on national issues.

The Congress has not yet been able to make public its official view on the developments of the Gen-G movement. On the other hand, the presence and role of the country's oldest party in such a transitional situation is seen to be zero.

Although the dispute within the Congress on the surface seems to be about whether to hold the party's 15th general convention before or after the elections, in reality, the main reason is the internal power struggle between the second and third generations in the Central Working Committee on the question of who will take over the leadership after President Sher Bahadur Deuba.

President Deuba, signaling his departure from active politics, handed over the position of acting president to Vice President Purna Bahadur Khadka at the Central Working Committee meeting on Asoj 28. Even though the command of the party has passed from Deuba to the second generation, the internal dispute is deepening. Acting President Khadka is currently in a double bind within the party. He, who aspires to become the president from the upcoming general convention, is facing the challenge of unifying Deuba's group and moving forward. However, he is also under pressure from the legitimate and illegitimate demands of the same group. Khadka, who has moved forward with the goal of becoming the president with the support of the Deuba team, is not able to get out of the siege of the former office bearers of the second generation.

‘Congress can now be said to be good-bye, it cannot be saved by shrugging,’ says analyst Hari Sharma, ‘If we want to save the Congress, we must remain firm on the issues that Gagan Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma have taken a stand on, otherwise the Congress cannot be saved.’

According to another analyst Geja Sharma Wagle, the seven former office bearers of the second generation, Krishna Prasad Sitaula, Prakash Man Singh, Bimalendra Nidhi, Shashank Koirala, Vijay Kumar Gachhadar, Gopal Man Shrestha and Prakash Sharan Mahat, have tried to accumulate power for their political future without holding a general convention immediately. The Congress has become a prisoner of indecision.

Wagle believes that even the acting president has not been able to move forward independently due to the pressure of these seven former office bearers, who have repeatedly played influential roles in the party and the government. ‘The struggle for leadership transfer including generational change has reached its final stage in the Congress, UML and Maoists,’ Wagle says, ‘Gagan and Bishwaprakash are fighting the last battle in the Congress. It is now inevitable to give leave to the tested second-generation leaders. If this does not happen, the Congress will continue to lose its relevance in national politics.’

Why is the Congress trying to back down when the UML is holding its general convention in Mangsir?

According to another analyst, Puranjan Acharya, even if the seven former office bearers do not want to hold the general convention in the current adverse situation, the foundation to save the Congress lies in this generation. ‘The third generation of Congressmen who have fought tirelessly, been shunned even by their own families, and have been continuously active since its inception are the main foundation for saving the party,’ says Acharya. ‘If Gagan and Bishwaprakash do not understand the essence of these loyal workers, it will be difficult for their slogan of change to succeed.’

The main challenge currently facing the Congress is whether it can maintain its democratic character by smoothly managing the generational transition or whether the party itself will be divided due to internal power struggles. The main dispute that is escalating this struggle is whether to hold the party’s 15th general convention before the elections or not, or if not, to call a special general convention.

According to the latest stance of Congress general secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma, there is a demand to inaugurate the general convention on Poush 16 instead of Mangsir mid-year. Although non-party leader Shekhar Koirala is not in favor of a special general convention, he supports the proposed schedule put forward by the general secretaries for the regular general convention. However, the establishment party has not shown any flexibility on holding the general convention before Baisakh.

According to spokesperson Prakash Sharan Mahat, the attempt is being made to bring a schedule to be held in Baisakh as holding the election and the general convention at the same time would be counterproductive. However, leaders of other parties argue that if the general convention cannot be held in Mangshir-Pus, there is no possibility of it being held in Baisakh either.

‘Now, it is being said that let’s hold the general convention in Baisakh by showing the Falgun election. If the election is not held in Falgun and it is postponed to Baisakh, it will be a game of delaying it until next Mangsakh,’ says young leader Gururaj Ghimire.

Leaders outside the central working committee, with the support of general secretaries Thapa and Sharma, have already registered a petition with the signatures of 54 percent of the representatives at the party central office in Sanepa to call a special general convention if the establishment party obstructs the regular general convention.

The party's statute has made a provision that a special general convention should be called within three months if 40 percent of the representatives sign the petition. Since the petition for a special general convention was registered on Asoj 29, there is a legal obligation to call the general convention by Poush 28. 'Only if the regular general convention is called before that, the need for a special general convention will disappear, otherwise a forced situation will arise,' says leader Ghimire.

Leaders of the establishment party argue that the general secretaries are in a hurry to take the leadership and cannot hold the general convention before the elections. However, the general secretaries claim that this leadership and policy has failed to restore the people's trust after the Gen-G movement. ‘If we fail to change the leadership and policy now, Deuba will be the president in the elections, and he will be active in ticket distribution,’ says a non-partisan leader. ‘The general secretaries understand that we cannot go to the elections under the same leadership.’

As the dispute within the party drags on, the risk of a split has increased. After a disagreement between General Secretary Gagan Thapa and Acting President Khadka over the agenda, the central

working committee meeting on Thursday was boycotted. Thapa had reached Sanepa with a plan to present a unilateral agenda on Friday if there was no agreement. In response, the joint general secretary of the establishment party, Mahendra Yadav, had also prepared to present an alternative agenda. Gagan’s rebellion in the Congress Since this could lead to a split in the party, the meetings on Friday and Saturday were postponed with the aim of coming up with an agenda through consensus. Even the office bearers’ meeting on Saturday could not reach an agreement.

On the other hand, the leading leaders have called a meeting of the general convention delegates available in Kathmandu on Tuesday  demanding a special general convention.

Questions have also been raised about the responsibility of the general secretaries for the failure to hold the regular general convention in Mangsir. The statute has given the responsibility of distributing and renewing active membership to the general secretaries. Since the task has not been completed even after four years, the establishment-oriented members are holding them responsible.

Schedule for the general convention in the Congress or a generational struggle?

According to establishment-oriented central member Nainsingh Mahar, all office bearers should take responsibility for the current situation. ‘If possible, a schedule should be made to hold the regular general convention in Mangsir,’ says Mahar, ‘but the office bearers could not make the necessary preparations for that.’ The situation of the special general convention has been created today because they could not work. Therefore, all office bearers should sit in a cooling period for the next term.'

After the acting president and the two general secretaries reached an agreement to maintain unity within the party, the meeting was called for 1 pm on Sunday. But it has been postponed at the last minute.

Congress Central Committee meeting postponed again, the Nepali Congress locked the office

General Secretary Bishwaprakash Sharma said that the bottom line for the next general convention could be between 16-19 Poush. He said that among the four options put forward earlier, talks are currently underway to hold the central general convention with an inauguration on the occasion of National Reconciliation Day.

Congress General Secretary Sharma's four-point proposal for holding the general convention

'We are preparing to present this in the meeting on Sunday by making a common agenda. "If we do this, we can give membership to one lakh new generations across the country, the movement will increase in every ward, the door to a new constitution will open, there will be an opportunity for lateral entry into the party, and between each general convention, one central member and one central member from the Middle East can be made," Sharma added. "If all these processes are completed, the general convention can be inaugurated on Poush 16."