At the ongoing special general convention of the Nepali Congress on Monday, General Secretary Gagan Thapa presented a contemporary political proposal and another General Secretary Bishwa Prakash Sharma presented a proposal on 'A changed country/a Congress that needs to change, a new journey of harmony, good governance and prosperity'.

Most of the future policies of the Congress put forward by the two General Secretaries in different reports are similar. The report includes issues such as the Congress not forming alliances in the elections, ensuring youth representation in the party committee, taking the lead in amending the constitution, and reforming the electoral system. General Secretary Thapa clarified that the Congress will not form alliances before the elections.

‘We will abandon the party’s ideals, principles, and values ​​and abolish alliances or collaborations that focus politics solely on gaining power and the interests of power,’ he announced. ‘We will end the tendency to form alliances or collaborations with anyone, anywhere, and at any time for the purpose of winning elections or out of fear of defeat, and to seek votes for another party,’ his report said.

The Congress Mahasamiti meeting held in Godavari in 2080 Falgun had also passed a policy of not forming alliances before the elections. General Secretary Sharma admitted that forming alliances in the past was a mistake and pledged not to repeat the mistake. ‘The special general convention will decide to contest the upcoming elections alone without forming an alliance with any party,’ he said. 

The two general secretaries announced that the system of being the prime minister for only two terms will be implemented. They have also committed to amending the Congress statute and constitution for that. ‘We have been practicing this continuously for a decade and a half, holding elections, forming a new government, but the prime minister will remain the same. On the one hand, this has increased dissatisfaction among the citizens. It has made the leadership unpopular. On the other hand, it has not yielded meaningful results,’ General Secretary Sharma’s report said. ‘Correcting the mistakes of the past, this special general convention declares that no one from the Congress will become the prime minister more than twice in the future. The Congress will take the initiative to enshrine this policy in the constitution.’

General Secretary Thapa said that a system of being able to become an MP from the proportional representation system only once will be implemented in the Congress. ‘Just like the criteria and policy for joining the party, the party will specify the duration of any state responsibility or government post at the local, provincial and federal levels,’ his report says. ‘To end the tradition of the same person repeatedly holding the same government responsibility, arrangements will be made to ensure that an individual has only one chance to become an MP through the proportional election system.’  

General Secretary Thapa’s report mentions that an internal competition (primary election) will be arranged within the party. ‘A system will be implemented to nominate candidates for the relevant level from among the three people, including women, who get the most votes by arranging internal competition from members of the relevant level within the party,’ General Secretary Thapa said. He said that the primary election will strengthen internal democracy, reduce disputes and increase public confidence in the party. 

Similarly, Thapa has said that lateral entry will also be implemented in the party. He says that this process will help in integrating people who have contributed for a long time in the professional and commercial sectors into various structures of the party. "Inclusive representation of Madhesi, Dalit, Muslim, indigenous, and indigenous peoples will be ensured at every level according to the 'cluster' of communities, with one-third of the working committee at each level being mandatory for women, youth, workers, professional sectors, and people with disabilities," the report states. General Secretary Thapa proposed that all those in various positions at each level, starting from the central president, should be elected from the lower-level wards. If the proposal is implemented, all leaders from the president to the ward level will have to be elected from the ward level. 

General Secretary Sharma proposed that a comprehensive change in representation be brought to the party's structure. He proposed a provision to ensure representation of those under 40 years of age in the central working committee. According to which, the central working committee has been provided with a provision for a total of 40 people, including 20 under 30 years of age and 20 between the ages of 30 and 40. The report proposes a provision for 10 people from both age groups in the provincial working committee and a minimum of 6 people in the district, federal area, provincial assembly area, and municipal working committees. 

The ward working committee has also been arranged to have at least 4 members of that age group. Accepting the inclusive arrangement, the report mentions that there will be a total of 4 representatives from each constituency, with at least 2 women and at least 1 member under the age of 30.

General Secretary Thapa expressed his commitment to amend the constitution and improve the electoral system through it. ‘The status of the implementation of the constitution, achievements, shortcomings and remaining work will be reviewed. We will take the initiative to amend the constitution through intensive dialogue and consultation with major political parties and stakeholders and lead to build a common understanding,’ he said.

He said that the electoral system will be reformed to make the inclusive principle more effective, discuss the concept of reserved constituencies and take the initiative to implement new practices such as ‘single rotation reserved constituencies’. He said that the no vote will be legally ensured to make the rights of voters meaningful. ‘Democratic concepts such as ensuring the voting rights of Nepalis living abroad and primary elections based on membership in the selection of candidates will be institutionalized,’ Thapa’s report states. 

Thapa has proposed that a system be made to provide grants to political parties through the state fund based on the vote share received to make election expenses transparent. He proposed to implement a system to maintain strict financial discipline in the economic activities of parties. General Secretary Thapa has another proposal to non-partisanize the state machinery and reform its institutions. He said that a merit-based appointment system will be implemented by ending party affiliation. 

He proposes to arrange a cooling-off period (a system in which one cannot be appointed to constitutional and public bodies for a certain period after retirement from service). "In this, a person who is a member of a political party will not be eligible for appointment to the Constitutional Commission for 2 years," Thapa added. "A law will be formulated so that a person who has been given administrative responsibility will not be able to take appointments to such bodies for 2 years after retirement." He said that legal arrangements will be made to end the trend of party-based division in constitutional appointments.

General Secretary Sharma said that qualifications and criteria will be implemented in appointments. "The selection of office bearers including the Vice-Chancellor of the university was done on the basis of political division. Division was also done in constitutional appointments. Division was done despite the fact that there were qualified individuals with diplomatic knowledge and coordination skills to handle the responsibility of an ambassador. This was a complete mistake," he said. "We will develop dignified criteria to measure specific qualifications." General Secretary Thapa said that public service delivery will be improved by using technology and implementing a single-door system.

General Secretary Thapa said that he would protect liberal democracy by taking on the challenge of populism. The Congress announced that it will launch a national renaissance campaign to overcome the politics of despair, hatred and revenge and instill hope, trust and security in the people.

Proposals of the two general secretaries

– No alliance in the elections, Congress to contest alone

– No more than two terms as Prime Minister

– A person can only become an MP from the proportional representation system once 

– ‘Primary elections’ for candidate selection and 

‘Lateral entry’ system so that roles can be given directly when entering the party based on expertise

– All those in various positions at every level, from the central president to the general convention representatives from lower-level wards, must be elected

– Representation of 20 people under 30 years of age and 20 people in the 30-40 age group in the central working committee

– Taking the lead in amending the constitution, reforming the electoral system

– ‘Single rotation reserved’ constituencies and ‘no vote’ system

– Non-partisanization of the state machinery and institutional reform

– Appointments based on merit in public bodies