KATHMANDU: Chair of the CPN (Maoist Centre) Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ has defended his continued leadership of the party, responding to growing internal criticism over his 36-year tenure.
Speaking at an event in Kathmandu on Wednesday to mark the 47th memorial of Pushpalal Shrestha, founder general secretary of the Communist Party of Nepal, Prachanda addressed those questioning his prolonged leadership.
He said he has been willing to hand over leadership, but claimed that no leader with the required ability has emerged so far to shoulder the party’s responsibilities.
“To those asking what I’ve done in 36 years, my answer is: we united the Maoist stream in 1991, launched the armed revolt in 1996, and signed the peace agreement in 2006,” he said. “Not every leader is capable of leading both a rebellion and a peace process. Everyone knows why leftist unity hasn’t materialized despite repeated calls for it.”
The former prime minister admitted he often reflects at night on whether to step down, but fears the party may fall into disarray without his leadership.
“I’ve done much soul-searching. Some people are restless, saying it’s been 36 years and I still haven’t stepped down,” he said. “Sometimes I do think of quitting, but then I worry the party might collapse if I do.”
Addressing ongoing debates within the party regarding leadership, Prachanda also took a jab at party Deputy General Secretary Janardan Sharma. He clarified that he is not against dissenting opinions and claimed he has allowed space for internal discussions.
Referring to Sharma’s recent remarks at a political discussion organized by the School of Marxism—where Sharma had emphasized the need for party restructuring—Prachanda said he had given him the space to “play around.”
“I haven’t taken disciplinary action against anyone—not Baburam, not Kiran, not Badal. Even when I didn’t expel some, they chose to leave on their own,” he said. “I have provided an environment for open discussion. Some comrades seem to think they need a bit of room to ‘play’, I’ve given them that freedom. If you want to keep playing, go ahead. I even brought them along for one and a half months of consultation meetings. What more do you want in the name of inner-party democracy?”
Prachanda stressed that suppressing differing opinions has never been his weakness. He acknowledged that there has been criticism of his leadership even within the party, but said no one has been expelled simply for holding a different viewpoint.
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