KATHMANDU: Disputes within the CPN Unified Socialist Party have intensified in recent days.
The tension escalated after Party Chair Madhav Kumar Nepal announced plans to merge with the CPN Maoist Centre.
During the party’s standing committee meeting on Wednesday, several leaders called for the leadership, particularly Chair Madhav Kumar Nepal, to address the demands of the younger generation (Gen-Z) by facilitating the necessary processes.
Among those demanding Nepal’s resignation were General Secretary Ghanashyam Bhusal, Leader Ramkumari Jhakri, Jeevan Ram Shrestha, and four others.
Leader Jhakri confirmed the call for the chair’s resignation, stating, “The primary demand of the younger generation is something that all party leaderships must now facilitate. In the meeting, we stated that we are ready to act if the leadership initiates, but the process must start from the top.”
Jhakri further noted that the party should not be stingy in addressing the youth’s demands, emphasizing this point during Wednesday’s meeting.
Most leaders at the meeting urged Chair Nepal to allow facilitation until allegations against him were either confirmed or disproven. They also suggested that, in the case of ongoing corruption cases, the chair should temporarily step aside from leadership until the court reaches a decision.
The standing committee meeting, which ended amidst tension on Wednesday, had scheduled a virtual follow-up for Thursday. However, due to continued friction among leaders, the session was postponed. Vice Chair Prakash Jwala announced that the central committee meeting will now take place in Aloknagar on 12 and 13 Kartik.
Meanwhile, the CPN Maoist Centre leadership has been preparing for the unification of socialist factions. The CPN Unified Socialist Party postponed its previously scheduled meeting in this context.
Earlier on Wednesday, CPN Maoist Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ informed that the leftist unification is nearing its conclusion. “The first phase of party unification within the Socialist Front will be declared in a few days. Our long-term goal is to reach UML and consolidate all leftist forces,” he said.
On the other hand, senior leader Jhalnath Khanal, currently in India for his wife’s treatment, had on 26 Ashwin warned Chair Nepal that this is not the right time for party unification. He emphasized the need for a deep, self-critical review of the four-year-long rebellion against UML. While taking care of his wife, Ravilakshmi Chitrakar, at Apollo Hospital in Delhi, Khanal publicly cautioned the leadership against merging with the Maoists, warning that rushing unification could destabilize the party.
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