The decision by President Koirala to settle the differences with rival faction led by Sher Bahadur Deuba comes in the wake of the four major political entities -- UCPN (Maoist), Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) -- agreeing to form chief justice led Interim Election Council to hold fresh CA elections.[break]
Sources close to President Koirala said he has assigned four Central Working Committee (CWC) members including the party´s spokesperson Dilendra Badu, Dil Bahadur Gharti, Gopal Pahadi and Ananda Dhungana to do ´necessary homework´ to settle the longstanding row in the party. "President Koirala is expected to hold discussions within his faction once the CWC members entrusted to do the homework submit their draft proposal for consensus," said a leader close to the party´s establishment faction.
Koirala, who is scheduled to visit Syangja to attend a party function on Monday, will begin holding discussions within his faction after his return to Kathmandu. "There has been a realization that the intra-party disputes should be settled at the earliest so that the party can start the election campaign unitedly. He will hold discussions with the Deuba faction after the issues are settled within his faction," a CWC member close to Koirala told Republica.
NC spokesperson Badu said the upcoming meetings of the Mahasamiti and CWC are aimed at gearing up preparations for the upcoming election. "President Koirala has expressed eagerness to settle all internal problems including those related to the party organization. The upcoming CWC meeting and Mahasamiti meeting will discuss the party´s election campaign after settling all internal issues," said Badu.
The intra-party rift that continues in the NC even after the unification of then Nepali Congress (Democratic) with the NC in 2008 had surfaced yet again in September, 2011 after President Koirala ´unilaterally´ dissolved the working committees of the party´s seven sister organizations including NSU, Nepal Tarun Dal and Nepal Women´s Association.
The long-running standoff had seemingly come to an end after both Koirala and Deuba agreed to name the chiefs of the seven sister organizations including the NSU through consensus on February 5, 2012. As per the understanding reached between the two leaders, Koirala faction picked the chiefs of Nepal Students Union, the Nepal Association of Fighters for Democracy and Nepal Peasants Association. Likewise, the Deuba side named the chiefs of Nepal Tarun Dal, Nepal Women´s Association, Nepal Aaadibasi Janajati Sangh and Nepal Rastriya Magar Sangh.
The patch-up, however, was short-lived as all 28 members from the Deuba side resigned en masse after the party´s establishment faction formed a 101-member ad hoc committee of the NSU, breaching the previous agreement to form just a 61-member ad hoc committee.
The row was later settled amicably in the following June after President Koirala inducted additional 20 members into the ad hoc committee of NSU and six members each into the ad hoc committees of Nepal Tarun Dal and Nepal Women´s Association. The Deuba faction, which had been boycotting the CWC meeting since September 2011, had then started attending the party´s CWC meetings.
Besides giving full shape to the working committees of various sister organizations, Koirala is yet to form parliamentary party board, the disciplinary committee and other bodies of the party. Likewise, President Koirala is yet to nominate five members in the 85-member CWC and joint general secretary of the party.
Deuba faction has been maintaining that the crucial bodies in the party such as parliamentary board should be constituted through consensus to keep party unity intact. The parliamentary board is considered very important as this body selects party´s candidates for the election.
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