KATHMANDU: Former President Bidya Devi Bhandari made a surprise appearance at the CPN-UML Morang district committee office in Biratnagar on Tuesday, defying the party establishment’s attempts to bar her from organizational activities.
Bhandari, who once served as the UML’s vice-chair, was welcomed by district chair Ajambar Rai, vice-chair Sagar Thapa, secretary Somraj Thapa, former central committee member Binod Dhakal, and hundreds of party cadres. She also paid floral tributes to statues of communist leaders at the party office premises.
Speaking to workers, Bhandari noted that it was her first visit to the Morang party office since the 2015 earthquake.
Her appearance comes weeks after the UML’s central committee meeting of August 5–6, which not only annulled her renewed membership but also explicitly barred her from participating in any party activities. Despite the ban, Bhandari has continued to assert her role as a former vice-chair elected by the ninth general convention and has ramped up her presence outside Kathmandu.
On Monday, she attended a program organized by Udgosh Daily in Biratnagar, and the following day, she visited the UML district office to directly interact with local leaders and cadres.
Her arrival in Biratnagar had already attracted significant attention. Ministers of Koshi Province, along with UML leaders including Binod Dhakal, lined up at Biratnagar Airport to welcome her. Provincial minister of state Sirjana Rai was seen greeting her with a bouquet, while UML Morang secretary Somraj Thapa and UML provincial secretary Rajkumar Bhandari were also present.
The UML establishment, however, tried to prevent cadres from attending her program. Parshuram Basnet, Biratnagar Metropolitan in-charge and a loyalist of party chair KP Sharma Oli, circulated instructions on social media urging members not to participate. He claimed that no official program had been sanctioned by the central, provincial, or district committees and accused organizers of spreading misinformation in Bhandari’s name.
His directive was ignored, as hundreds of leaders and cadres gathered in Panchali to receive the former president.
The backdrop to the tensions lies in UML’s internal power struggle. In the last district convention, leaders aligned with Binod Dhakal, a key ally of Bhandari, decisively defeated Oli loyalists, with Ajambar Rai elected district chair and his panel sweeping key positions. A similar result was seen in Biratnagar Metropolitan, where Dhakal’s faction also prevailed.
Bhandari’s visit is widely seen as a signal that she intends to remain politically active despite Oli’s efforts to sideline her.
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