KATHMANDU: The intra-party dispute in the CPN-UML has taken a new height after the Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba-led government introduced an ordinance on party split.
A cabinet meeting on Tuesday decided to bring an ordinance, according to which, 20 percent of central committee members or the parliamentary party (PP) members will be sufficient to break away from the mother party.
The ordinance reached the Office of the President on Tuesday evening.
As per the Political Party Act, 40 percent of CC members or PP members were required to split the party.
With the recommendation of the new ordinance, both the factions of the UML have intensified the meeting.
With the prorogation of the parliament session, the ordinance became the talks of the town on Monday. Reacting to the abrupt ending of the parliament, UML Chairman Oli had described the move as a conspiracy to intentionally split the party.
Despite intensified meetings by both the factions, there had been no consensus in the UML. Hence, the Oli faction informed the Parliament Secretariat stating that an action has been taken against 14 lawmakers including senior lawmaker Madhav Kumar Nepal as per the decision taken on August 9.
Senior CPN-UML leader Madhav Kumar Nepal has indicated that he will register another party now, concluding that party Chairman KP Oli was not sincere for unity.
Nepal said Chair Oli sidelined every other leader and took to unilateral ways leading to the current political crisis in the party and the country. He added that Oli did not focus on the people’s sufferings and grievances.
In a special address to party cadres close to him Tuesday, leader Nepal said, “Oli attempted to completely destroy their faction. We raised our voices when those who had dedicated their lives to the party were subjected to injustice.”
He said Oli’s efforts for unity were only acts of drama as he didn’t sincerely implement the issues put forward.
Stating that he received information that 14 leaders of his faction were suspended, leader Nepal said Oli labeled various allegations against us and shut the door for us.
Leader Nepal said they needed to transform into a revolutionary party now. He said, “We will hoist the flag of our movement and make ourselves beloved force of the Nepali people.”
According to the leaders of the Nepali side who are in the homework of forming a new party, if the ordinance is issued by the President on Wednesday, the commission is ready to go for the registration of the new party immediately. The signatures of about 60 members have been collected from the 203-member central committee of the Election Commission.
Now, if the law is passed so that 20 percent members can split the party, 41 members will be enough. Similarly, 22 lawmakers who voted for Prime Minister Deuba are in favor of the new party. It is claimed that a few more will be added to leaders. The group claimed that his 9 MPs in the National Assembly is.
The disgruntled faction has prepared possible names for the new party, i.e., CPN-UML (Socialist) or CPN-UML (Revolutionary) and sickle and hammer inside a star or diyo (oil lamp) as election symbols. The central committee of the new party will have 60 to 90 members, according to a leader close to Nepal.
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