Kathmandu — The establishment faction of the Nepali Congress, led by Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, has taken disciplinary action against General Secretaries Gagan Kumar Thapa and Bishwaprakash Sharma, expelling them from the party for five years.
The decision was made during a meeting of the party’s Central Working Committee held at the party’s central office in Sanepa. The meeting also decided to expel Joint General Secretary Farmulla Mansur for the same duration. Additionally, party members who have supported the call for a special general convention have been instructed to return to their respective organisational responsibilities.
According to party sources, the action was taken after Thapa and Sharma initiated preparations for a special general convention, which the establishment faction claims was against the official party decision.
Thapa and Sharma had argued that the demand raised by 54 percent of general convention representatives for a special convention was ignored. However, a previous central committee meeting — attended by both Thapa and Sharma — had agreed to hold the party’s regular general convention in April, citing logistical difficulties in organising it during Poush.
Despite the decision, the two general secretaries expressed dissent and proceeded with plans for a special general convention. They formed a separate election committee and announced that decisions made through the closed session of the convention would be considered final.
In an attempt to prevent a party split, leaders from both sides held multiple rounds of discussions. On Tuesday alone, three rounds of talks were held, including a meeting between Thapa, Sharma, and Party President Deuba on Wednesday morning. However, the talks failed to yield a compromise.
Following the breakdown of dialogue, the faction advocating the special general convention instructed its election committee to proceed with the electoral process. As part of that process, Gagan Thapa’s candidacy has been registered for the post of party president, along with nominations for other office-bearer positions, according to the election committee.
