PM Oli faction central committee meet underway at Baluwatar

KATHMANDU: A meeting of the Central Committee of Nepal Communist Party (NCP) of the Prime Minister KP Oli faction is underway at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar.

According to Surya Thapa, Press Advisor to Prime Minister Oli, the meeting started at 11:45 am on Tuesday.

Likewise, Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”, and senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal are also holding a meeting of their faction today itself.

Meanwhile, leaders Top Bahadur Rayamajhi and Mani Thapa — considered close to Prachanda — have also participated in the meeting.

Party Vice President Bamdev Gautam and Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa Badal, however, are not present at the meeting.

Sources, meanwhile, said Prime Minister Oli is making preparations to bring an ordinance on the political party after he lacked required number of central committee members to split the party.

According to NCP sources, Prime Minister Oli is preparing to recommend the President to bring ordinance on the party split before facing a disciplinary action to be taken by the Dahal-Nepal faction through majority. Oli is preparing to call an emergency meeting to this effect today itself.

According to a highly-placed source, he is preparing to bring the ordinance on the party split by tweaking the previous one introduced in the Nepali month Baisakh.

According to the existing provision, 40 percent of members are required to split the party in the central committee and the parliamentary party.

Oli has a plan to notch up 40 percent by appointing new central committee members after his faction lacks the required number.

He is preparing to add 300 new CC members through the CC meeting underway at Baluwatar. He is also preparing to administer them an oath of office and secrecy today itself.

The NCP has a total of 441 CC members including 241 from the then CPN-UML and 200 from CPN (Maoist Center). In the former CPN-UML, Oli has 131, Madhav Nepal has 110 CC members. Similarly, in the former CPN (Maoist Center), Prachanda has 178 and Ram Bahadur Thapa has 22 CC members.