With the agreement of President Deuba, the establishment party has put forward a 'condition' to withdraw the application for a special general convention, which was registered at the party central office on 20 Asoj with the signatures of 54 percent of the general convention delegates, along with the work schedule to be held within the month. However, this has been rejected by the special general convention supporters.
What you should know
The Nepali Congress meeting has not yet resolved the dispute over whether to hold the general convention election before or after. As the general convention dispute has not been resolved, even the proposal to extend the term of the Central Working Committee could not be passed in the meeting. The term of office bearers and members of the Congress is ending in November.
General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa has been saying that he will not propose to extend the term until it is ensured that the general convention will be held before the election. Presenting the agenda of the meeting on Saturday, he said that if there is an agreement in the next meeting, it will be decided accordingly and if there is no agreement, it will be decided according to the procedure.
Thapa has said that a special general convention is the only option due to the pressure of time. He has proposed that if the entire party does not stand together for the regular general convention within the month, then the special general convention should be set for 27 and 28 Mangesh.
‘For the Congress to walk proudly in the election, a general convention must be held before the election, and there are currently two ways to do that. If the entire party is not ready to hold a regular general convention within the month of Poush, or if it cannot be held, then a special general convention is the only option,' he said. 'Looking at the situation so far, I feel that this is the only option. Only the leadership that comes from the convention can lead the country on the path of peace and consensus, and can move forward with the party's policy and resolve.'
General Secretary Thapa disagrees with the attempts of President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka, who are active in resolving the general convention dispute, to bring a 'conditional' agenda within the month of Poush. With the agreement of President Deuba, the establishment side has put forward a 'condition' that the application for a special general convention, signed by 54 percent of the general convention representatives and registered at the party central office on 20 Asoj, be withdrawn. But this has been rejected by those in favor of a special general convention.
They argue that holding a general convention within the month of Poush will negate the relevance of the special general convention, so there is no need to withdraw it. General Secretary Thapa and another General Secretary Bishwaprakash Sharma are dissatisfied with the strategy of the establishment side not wanting to bring the agenda until the application for the special general convention is withdrawn.
‘We are not looking for an agenda, we are looking for a general convention’ After the Congress meeting, Thapa said, ‘If the entire leadership level has the will, a periodic convention is possible within December. However, if it is not decided that a periodic convention cannot be held, the special general convention cannot be postponed. The delay was made so that there is as much consensus as possible. If there is consensus in the Central Working Committee meeting to be held now, it will be by consensus, otherwise, a decision will be made legally.’ Another meeting has been scheduled for 11 Mangsir to take a decision regarding the general convention.
General Secretary Thapa has not taken up the proposal to extend the term of the Central Working Committee as there is no consensus on whether to hold the general convention before the elections. The four-year term of the Central Working Committee is ending in mid-Mangsir. Thapa has maintained that a new leadership should be selected from a special general convention without extending his term, while leaders in favor of a general convention are now pressing for a special one, saying that a regular general convention is no longer possible.
Meanwhile, if an application for party registration is submitted to the Election Commission in the name of President Deuba, the need for a special general convention will increase even more, according to leaders in favor of the general secretary. "If tickets are given in the name of the president, it is not practical to give a caretaker and withdraw from active politics, and for that too, the general secretaries say that the leadership should be changed by calling a special general convention," said a central member close to Thapa.
If there is no agreement, the Congress will have to call a special general convention within 28 Poush. There is a mandatory provision in the Congress statute that if forty percent of the representatives sign the demand, a special general convention must be called within three months. 54 percent of the representatives have signed and registered a petition demanding a special general convention on 29 Asoj.
Since three months will pass on 28 Pus, there is a legal provision to hold a special general convention within that period. Although there is a provision in the statute that the four-year term of the Central Working Committee can be extended by a majority for one year, the provision for a special general convention cannot be stopped. The pressure being exerted by the establishment party to withdraw the application for a special general convention by bringing the agenda within Pus comes from the intention of not holding the general convention, says Gururaj Ghimire, a leader in favor of the special general convention.
'We are not doing this to look at or read the agenda, we need the general convention, if the central general convention is completed by 28 Pus, the appropriateness of the special general convention will be over by itself,' says Ghimire, 'But there is no question of withdrawing the application based on the agenda.'
Similarly, the Congress has concluded that a multi-party national dialogue is necessary to address the voices vocalized for change through the Gen-G demonstration. "The Congress has concluded that a common understanding is necessary to move the country towards peace, prosperity and stability, along with transformation in accordance with the spirit and values of the Constitution," the decision said.
Calling for a multi-party dialogue and building a common national understanding with the parties of the dissolved House of Representatives, parties that emerged after the protests, the Gen-G generation, civil society, intellectuals, businessmen/entrepreneurs, media persons and stakeholders, the Congress has said, "The Nepali Congress decides to take the necessary initiative for this."
