KATHMANDU: CPN-UML Deputy General Secretary Yogesh Bhattarai has submitted a detailed 15-point written proposal and statement at the party’s ongoing Central Committee meeting.
Bhattarai registered the written document after party Chair KP Sharma Oli did not allow him to present his views orally at the meeting, which has been underway for three days in Bhanimandal, Lalitpur. The document includes his views on party reorganization and other issues.
In the proposal, Bhattarai has called for a detailed review of the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli floods and landslides of Bhadra 10, the incidents of Bhadra 23 and 24 last year, the party’s defeat in the Falgun 21 election, leadership transition, organizational reforms and left-wing cooperation.
Natural disasters and the state’s role
Bhattarai said the devastating landslides and floods around the Bhotekoshi and Trishuli rivers caused significant loss of life and property. He said the three tiers of government failed to maintain the expected coordination and cooperation in rescue and relief efforts during the crisis.
He has called on the government to establish a ‘Reconstruction Authority’ for the rehabilitation and long-term reconstruction of disaster-affected areas. He also said climate change should be viewed in relation to national security and livelihoods, and that Nepal should strongly raise the issue of climate justice in international forums.
Leadership transition in the UML
Referring to the party’s defeat in the House of Representatives election on Falgun 21 and public sentiment, Bhattarai has called on party Chair KP Sharma Oli to respectfully step down from the leadership.
He has proposed that Oli pave the way for new leadership in the party. Bhattarai described leadership transition not as an issue of removing someone from office, but as a historic opportunity to promote democratic culture, generational transition and the development of new political trust.
Organizational reform
Bhattarai has called for restoring provisions in the UML statute limiting office bearers to a maximum of two terms and setting a 70-year age limit.
He has proposed a clear system of assigning responsibilities based on merit, ability and results, while ending nepotism and factional influence. He has also called for adopting the principle of checks and balances to prevent the concentration of power and authority within the party.
Left-wing unity and cooperation
Reviewing past communist unification efforts, Bhattarai said they failed to last because they were carried out hastily without adequate ideological and organizational preparation. He argued that future unity should not simply be aimed at increasing numbers but should involve forces that share compatible ideas and principles.
He also said the party should gradually move forward under the ideological foundation of People’s Multiparty Democracy (Jana ko Bahudaliya Janabad), or JBP, under UML leadership.
Representation of young people
Bhattarai said the Gen-Z movement and the results of the Free Student Union elections indicated a growing distance between the party and the younger generation. He stressed the need to incorporate young people’s skills and technological knowledge into party-building efforts.
He also called for ensuring respectful and inclusive representation of workers, women, Dalits, Indigenous nationalities, Madhesis, Muslims and other marginalized communities at decision-making levels.
High-level judicial commission
Bhattarai called for self-criticism over the security weaknesses of the then KP Sharma Oli-led government during the incidents of Bhadra 23 and 24 last year associated with the Gen-Z movement.
He has demanded the formation of a high-level judicial commission led by a sitting Supreme Court justice to conduct a comprehensive, impartial and credible investigation into the incidents and establish the facts.
‘Audit’ of government performance
Bhattarai has also proposed that the party’s central departments be mobilized as think tanks to regularly monitor the performance, policies, programmes and budget of the current government led by Balendra Shah.
He proposed that periodic audit reports on the government’s performance, based on facts, be made public.
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