The decision to hold the general convention on April 28-31 has been made by a majority. As there are signs that the establishment party will not be flexible in reaching a consensus, the possibility of internal conflict has increased.
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The internal dispute within the Congress has become more complicated as the chances of reaching an agreement on a special general convention have dwindled.
While General Secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma are preparing to call a special general convention, the Central Working Committee has brought a schedule for holding a regular general convention after the House of Representatives elections. The informal dialogue between the establishment party and the general secretaries for consensus has also been disrupted.
The majority of the Central Working Committee meeting held on Friday under the chairmanship of Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka concluded that the rationale for the special general convention has ended. The decision to hold the general convention on 28-31 Baisakh, changing the schedule previously scheduled for 26-28 Poush, was also made by the majority. Leaders say that there is a possibility of internal conflict as there are signs that the establishment party will not be flexible for consensus.
Leader Shekhar Koirala has also supported the establishment party on the issue of the general convention. President Sher Bahadur Deuba had called Koirala to his residence on Thursday in the presence of Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka and held discussions. Even before the meeting of the Central Working Committee on Friday, Khadka had sought Koirala's consent. Then the revised schedule of the general convention was presented in the meeting.
A separate meeting of the top leaders of the establishment party was held before the meeting of the working committee. In it, acting chairman Khadka gave a 'briefing' on the understanding reached with leader Koirala and the agenda. He also narrated the incident of the general secretaries not attending the discussion called by chairman Deuba. A leader close to him said that chairman Deuba felt relieved after receiving support from leader Koirala.
Leader Koirala had earlier been adamant that a general convention should be held before the elections. He said that if it is not regular, the central working committee itself should call a special general convention. Even though Koirala agreed to the post-election agenda, there is a clear divide in the party between those who want and those who do not want a special general convention. Leaders say that this has the potential to increase conflict.
In the meeting of the performance committee, acting president Khadka had proposed a revised agenda for the general convention, concluding that the rationale for the special general convention had ended. Some leaders, including the general secretaries, disagreed with it. Joint general secretary Jeevan Pariyar, close to Koirala, claimed that the agenda was passed unanimously. Establishment-oriented leader Bimalendra Nidhi said that the agenda was revised after securing the consent of Koirala.
The establishment-oriented party has argued that the rationale for the special general convention has ended with the agenda for the 15th general convention being brought out in the central working committee meeting on 15th Mangesh. ‘In the context of the necessary process as per the schedule of the 15th General Convention, as per the statute, the demand for holding the regular 15th General Convention on time or a special general convention during that period has been made, so the justification for the special general convention has automatically ended from 15 Mangsir,’ the meeting’s decision states.
General Secretary Thapa, on the other hand, says that the special general convention has become even more imperative now that it has been decided that there will be no regular general convention within the month. On 29 Asoj, 2,488 (54 percent) general convention representatives had submitted a signed application to the central office demanding the special general convention.
Article 17 (2) of the party statute mentions two ways to call a special general convention – the central working committee itself deems it necessary or if a request is made with the signatures of 40 percent of the general convention representatives, it should be called within three months. If it goes according to the statute, the special general convention should be called by 28 Pus as per the application given by 54 percent of the representatives.
General Secretary Thapa says that they have the responsibility to comply with the statute. ‘It is not possible to extend the term of the Central Working Committee by using one article of the constitution and amend the agenda but not use another article of the same constitution,’ he told Kantipur. ‘We will move forward with the agenda of the special general convention.’
General Secretary Thapa says that he is confident that the special general convention will be called by the president. ‘So far, my expectation is that the party president has repeatedly said that he will not let the party split or put the party in trouble, so I am confident that the president will call this special general convention, the center will call it,’ Thapa said. ‘Even if not, it is my responsibility to go to the special general convention.’
Another general secretary Sharma has put forward two options for the special general convention to be called by an institutional decision as per consensus and the general secretary to call it despite disagreement. The special general convention to be called by consensus has been proposed to have an inauguration at 9 am on 26th Poush, a closed session in the afternoon, candidacy registration in the evening, and voting through electronic machines the next day. He says that the schedule of the special general convention called by the general secretary will be decided with restraint amid the disagreements.
Although there is no need to disagree about the new schedule of the regular general convention, Sharma says that the main question is the special general convention. ‘Not being regular immediately means opening the door to the special. Now it is open. Let’s enter it as one. Let’s hold the special in mid-Poush, regular in mid-Baishakh. This is correct,’ he says, ‘None of us have the right to disrespect the signatures of 54 percent of the general convention delegates. The acting president should consult with the president and immediately reach a decision on the special general convention.’
General secretaries Thapa and Sharma are preparing to hold a press conference on Saturday and formally invite delegates from across the country to Kathmandu for the special general convention. The responsibilities have been divided so that Thapa will write the political report and another general secretary Sharma will oversee the management of the special general convention. Both general secretaries had mentioned in a joint statement on Thursday that the schedule of the old regular general convention has been postponed.
In the meantime, some efforts were made with General Secretary Sharma through Congress leader Ramesh Lekhak for a consensus. Although General Secretary Sharma proposed the option of making the special general convention a place for policy debate and a starting point for party unity, a leader said that no concrete conclusion was reached. ‘Now there is no basis for reaching a consensus by discussing it again. The president also does not seem very interested in discussing the issue of holding a general convention before the elections,’ the leader said, ‘It would be different if the general secretaries took the initiative to prevent the party from splitting, otherwise the possibilities of consensus are getting further away.’
General Secretary Thapa says that the main political question of whether Nepal before and after the Gen-G movement of 23 and 24 Bhadra is the same is the main political question today. ‘The view that Nepal before and after 23 Bhadra is the same, we are right, others are wrong has remained the same. No, the situation of Nepal after 23 and 24 is different. We have made mistakes. We must rectify ourselves. "Our view is that the people will not believe us unless we hold a general convention before the election and take a changed Congress," he says. "Instead of sending a message that we will hold a general convention before the election and come back changed, saying that we will stand together with other parties and contest the election is an attempt to counter the Gen-G movement. This is not acceptable to us."
Meanwhile, leaders in favor of a special general convention held a press conference on Friday and expressed the view that the party should change its policy and leadership before the election to make it stronger, more dynamic, and in line with public sentiment. They say that since it is not regular, it is a statutory obligation to hold a special general convention, and the general secretaries will follow the statute and make it happen.
The main question now is whether the special general convention called by the two general secretaries will put forward the agenda of leadership change or focus on policy debate. "If the issue of leadership selection is raised after the meeting is called and that process is entered into, the risk of party division begins," said a former official close to Deuba.
Can the General Secretary call a special general convention? The question is being raised whether a special general convention called by the General Secretary is legal or not. Joint General Secretary Mahendra Yadav says that a general convention cannot be called without an institutional decision. ‘The General Secretary does not have the authority to call a special general convention, only the Central Working Committee can call it,’ he says, ‘Say 54 or 40 percent, they will demand it. But they will not call a special general convention themselves, the Central Working Committee should decide.’
Advocate Yadunath Khanal, on the other hand, says that the jurisdiction to call a special general convention lies with the General Secretaries. According to him, the method and process for calling a special general convention by the Central Working Committee itself and requesting it through the signatures of 40 percent of the representatives are different. ‘When the Central Working Committee calls a special general convention, the party’s decision is necessary. If 40 percent of the representatives demand it, the General Secretaries can call it,’ he says.
There is a provision in the statute that a request for a special general convention must be submitted to the center with the signatures of 40 percent of the general convention delegates. ‘The meaning of the center is explained in Article 3 (12) of the statute. In which it is said that the center will also include the central working committee and the central office of the party,’ says Advocate Khanal, ‘The central office of the party is explained in Article 27 (1), which says that the central office of the Congress will be under the general secretary, and the general secretary will supervise and operate the central office. On this basis, the general secretaries have the right to call a special general convention.’
Advocate Keshav Joshi, legal assistant to President Sher Bahadur Deuba, says that a special general convention called without the decision of the central working committee is not legal. ‘There is no dispute that the general secretaries do not call a special general convention, but that it should be called by the decision of the central working committee. On the other hand, after the general convention schedule came out, some public relations offices located abroad have held conventions. "The old representatives have been replaced," he says, "the justification for the special has ended when the regular general convention has already begun."
Central member NP Saud says that there is no possibility of any general convention before the election when the Central Working Committee meeting has already declared it unjustified. He says that even before this, the schedule was not brought to make the special general convention boring, but to make it boring. "On November 15, the schedule was brought by internal consensus to satisfy those in favor of the special general convention. Now that the process of the general convention has begun, there is no justification for the special one," he says.
Leaders in favor of the special general convention have objected, saying that the decision to move the schedule was taken without implementing the provisions of the statute. "We had already clearly stated that there is no facility to postpone the date without holding the general convention at the announced time. If the date is postponed, the application for a special general convention registered on 29 Asoj will be revived. We had said that it will be the party's mandatory duty to implement it. Now we have reached that exact point," said leader Subash Pokharel. "Now there is no alternative to a special general convention. It is better if the central working committee decides and calls it, otherwise the general secretaries will call it."
