KATHMANDU: The Secretariat meeting of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) aimed at narrowing down the existing intra-party disputes ended on Wednesday late evening deciding to sit for another round of talks on May 2.
The three-hour-long meeting remained inconclusive as both the disputing sides of the party remained adamant to their respective stance. “We discussed on several agendas, including convening the meeting of the Standing Committee, among other issues,” party Spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha said.
Though the party leaders discussed several agendas, including the ordinances and other issues, they could not come to a conclusion today. “We will sit for another round of talks on May 2,” Shrestha said.
The party is currently undergoing a serious rift in regard to two ordinances introduced to amend the Acts related to political party and Constitutional Council’s jurisdiction, backlog of the works on party unification and dillydallying on nominating NCP Vice Chairman Bamdev Gautam to the member of the National Assembly.
It has been learned that the disgruntled section of the party led by senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal criticized Prime Minister KP Oli for bringing two ordinances without consulting the party leaders.
This was one of the many other reasons why the party leaders were discontented with PM Oli, say party insiders.
“PM Oli defended his move saying that it was not directed to his fellow-leaders,” a source said adding that he did not bring the ordinances with ill-intent.
Prime Minister Oli had earlier brought the ordinances to make it easier for him to split his own party with the suspicion that his opponents inside the party were trying to oust him.
Though President Bidya Devi Bhandari had endorsed both the ordinances at the recommendation of the Council of Ministers, the government was compelled to withdraw them amid criticism from various sections of the society, including the ruling party.
Since then, PM Oli has been continuously under pressure from the party even though the government withdrew the controversial ordinances.
The Cabinet meeting had brought the ordinance allowing party split with the support of 40 percent in either the central committee or the parliamentary party.
It should be noted that the Act about political parties has a provision of the support of 40 percent in both the central committee and the parliamentary party to split a political party.
While the first ordinance was aimed at amending the provisions in the Political Party Act to make it easy for a party split, the second ordinance was aimed at convening the meeting of the Constitutional Council without the participation of main opposition party leader.
The nine-member Secretariat has leaders including Prime Minister KP Oli, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Madhav Kumar Nepal, Jhalanath Khanal, Bishnu Poudel, Ishwor Pokhrel, Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Bamdev Gautam, and Ram Bahadur Thapa.
Meanwhile, earlier today, both the sides initiated a signature campaign respectively to prove their majority in the parliamentary party.
Meanwhile, in an effort to woo his opponents, PM Oli on Tuesday held a meeting with Dahal. The previous day on Monday, he held a one-on-one meeting, speculated as weighty, with senior leader Nepal.
So much so that PM Oli in recent times, intensified meetings and his activities after he ‘realized’ that he has fallen into the minority in the Party Secretariat, Standing Committee, and even the Parliamentary Party.
He also discussed the developments with President Bidhya Devi Bhandari.
With the political bickering in Nepal, Chinese Ambassador to Nepal, Hou Yanqi also met with President Bidya Bhandari and discussed the developments here.
Likewise, even Chinese President Xi Jinping held a telephonic conversation with his counterpart Bhandari on Monday night.
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