KATHMANDU, April 16: It was a quiet Tuesday morning in Baluwatar when Binda Pandey arrived at the Prime Minister's official residence, carrying a copy of her latest book, Bhuimanchhe—The Grassroots Person. The meeting was anything but formal. It began, as such encounters often do, with a phone call and a simple gesture: New Year greetings from CPN-UML Chairman and Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli. But beneath the polite exchange lingered months of political tension, unspoken resentment—and now, perhaps, the first signs of reconciliation.
Pandey, a prominent UML Standing Committee member, had been suspended by the party four months ago for voicing her disapproval over a controversial decision of UML to receive land donated by Bhatbhateni Supermarket’s owner to build the party’s central office on December 25, 2024. Along with Pandey, the UML Secretariat meeting suspended Central Committee member Usha Kiran Timsina for six months for violating the party’s discipline by speaking against the party on various occasions.
The party’s central leadership—led by Oli—deemed her dissent unpalatable and handed her a six-month suspension. Yet, as she sat across Oli on Tuesday, sipping tea and handing him her book, the air between them seemed less frosty than it once was.
What happened during that 45-minute meeting? According to Pandey, after the pleasantries and gift exchange, the conversation naturally drifted toward politics—and the elephant in the room: her suspension.
Oli, somewhat defensive, reportedly remarked, "Even if you disagreed, you should have kept it to yourself." Pandey, ever outspoken, replied that she speaks up when her conscience demands it.
Lack of conservation area for rare tea plant
But then came the twist. "I never even received a suspension letter," Pandey told him.
Surprised, Oli asked, “You haven’t received the letter even now?”
"No suspension letter, and no revocation letter either," Pandey said.
To that, Oli chuckled and responded, “Well, if you never got the letter, what suspension are we even talking about?”
For a party as hierarchically rigid as the UML, such an exchange hints at something more than a mere miscommunication—it signals a shift. Pandey herself isn’t sure if her suspension is officially over. “Maybe the party secretariat will decide something now,” she said, shrugging off the ambiguity.
Still, Oli’s invitation and softened tone are hard to ignore. Especially now.
As Prime Minister, Oli faces growing dissent both from within the party and outside. While the streets are simmering with protests, the economy is dragging, and young people are leaving the country in droves. Within the ruling coalition, Nepali Congress leaders—from Dr Shekhar Koirala to Gagan Thapa—have grown increasingly critical, accusing Oli of authoritarianism and poor governance. His grip, once firm, now seems increasingly fragile.
Inside his own party, too, waters are choppy. Former President Bidhya Devi Bhandari, once his loyal ally, is reportedly eyeing a return to the UML's top post. Her political language has sharpened and a faction within the party is actively backing her.
In such a situation, it’s no surprise that Oli might be reevaluating his alliances—and missteps. “He acted too hastily back then,” one UML insider told Republica. “Some of us warned him. But maybe now he realizes that voices like Binda Pandey’s are too valuable to alienate.”
Valuable, indeed. Pandey, known for her ideological clarity and organizational commitment, represents a rare mix of principle and political capital within UML ranks. And perhaps Oli, ever the strategist, now sees the need to bring such voices back into the fold—not just for unity, but for survival.
Whether this meeting marks a true thaw or just a political convenience remains to be seen. But for now, Binda Pandey walks away with more than just a conversation—she walks away with a signal that, maybe, the door is still open.