Nepali Congress closed session to begin at 4 pm

KATHMANDU: The closed session of the Nepali Congress is scheduled to begin at 4 pm today.

Dr. Suresh Raj Acharya, executive director of the Nepali Congress Policy Research and Training Institute, said the closed session would begin at 4 pm.

The session is scheduled to endorse four reports presented by the party president, vice-president, general secretary and treasurer. Following the closed session, the party will proceed with the election of its new leadership. According to the election schedule, voting is set to begin at 7 am on October 8.

The general convention is electing 19 office-bearers, including the president, senior vice-president, four vice-presidents, three general secretaries, 15 joint general secretaries and the treasurer, under the party’s constitutional provisions.

The party constitution also authorizes the president to nominate four joint general secretaries and one treasurer. With these nominations, the total number of office-bearers will be 24.

According to the list published by the Election Committee, 79 candidates have filed nominations for the 19 elected positions. Three candidates are contesting for the post of president: incumbent President Gagan Thapa, former Joint General Secretary Kishore Singh Rathore and Shyam Krishna Khadgi.

There is one position for senior vice-president, while the constitution provides for two vice-presidents—one reserved for women and one in the open category. Senior Vice-President Bishwaprakash Sharma has filed an uncontested candidacy for senior vice-president. Likewise, Pushpa Bhusal is the sole candidate in the women’s category for vice-president. Both Sharma and Bhusal currently serve as vice-presidents.

The process of filing claims and objections against the candidates is currently underway.