Khum Bahadur to join Deuba camp

KATHMANDU, Sept 5: After month-long negotiations, candidate for Nepali Congress (NC) president Sher Bahadur Deuba and the party´s influential leader Khum Bahadur Khadka have agreed to support each other in the upcoming 12th General Convention slated for September 17-21.



Khadka, who announced his intention to contest the post of general secretary, agreed to support Deuba as the latter has agreed to nominate him to the post of either party vice-president or general secretary, according to sources close to Deuba. Khadka will be contesting for membership of the party´s Central Working Committee (CWC) at the convention. [break]



As per the party´s amended statute, the elected president is supposed to nominate the vice-president and one of the two general secretaries in the party office bearers´ body from among the elected 25 CWC members. Deuba has already chosen Bimalendra Nidhi as his ´running mate´, for the post of general secretary.



Deuba is announcing his candidacy for president along with Nidhi´s candidacy for general secretary at a press conference to be organized at party headquarters in Sanepa, Sunday afternoon. “We had been waiting for Khum Bahadurji´s decision to join us before announcing the candidacies,” said a close Deuba aide.



A former home minister and senior leader of the NC, Khadka still has considerable clout in the party. Both presidential candidates Sushil Koirala and Deuba had been seeking Khadka´s support to win at the general convention.



Khadka had announced that he would support whichever of the two presidential candidates agreed to take him as ´running mate´, for the post of general secretary. He had formed five-member teams to talk to Koirala and Deuba separately for their support.



With both presidential candidates rejecting his demand, Khadka now has to satisfy himself with a nominated position in the party office bearers´ body.



Leaders close to Deuba also claimed that they have already reached an agreement with CWC members Purna Bahadur Khadka, Chiranjivi Wagle, Deep Kumar Upadhyaya, Dr Narayan Khadka and Amar Raj Kaini.



Asked if those five had joined the Deuba camp, Purna Bahadur Khadka said they are still in talks with Deuba. “We are holding discussions. Things will be settled by tomorrow (Sunday),” he said.



Deuba´s aides said that Khadka and other party leaders are also scheduled to be present at the press conference at which the candidacies of Deuba for president and Nidhi for general secretary will be announced.



koshraj@myrepublica.com

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