Category Archives: Nepali Congress

Sushil Koirala at the Helm of Nepali Congres: The Road Ahead

Posted on September 28, 2010 by | 1 Comment

What does the strong showing of Sushil Koirala panel mean for the Nepali Congress and the broader national politics?

By Akhilesh Upadhyay

sushil koirala of nepali congress

At least in short term, Sushil Koirala’s election is less likely to have a more telling impact on national politics of Nepal than that of the three-time Prime Minister Deuba’s would have had.

The much delayed Nepali Congress General Convention is finally done with. For now, the battle for succession is over. It is another Koirala. Acting President Sushil Koirala, 71, has consolidated his hold on the Grand Old Party as the elected chief for the next three years. Also, the Koirala panel holds a majority in the party’s central committee. Prakash Man Singh beat the much fancied Bimalendra Nidhi in the crucial race for the General Secretary.

What does all this mean for the NC and the national politics at large?

But first let’s gloat on the success of Gagan Thapa, 34, who got the highest votes at the GC. Gagan made his mark in the party—indeed the national politics—as a fiery orator, a student leader, taking squarely on the NC establishment in the early 2000s. He rode high on reformist agenda but, unlike so many other leaders, both young and seasoned, he had the gift to communicate his ideas effortlessly in large public rallies and the fast mushrooming political TV talk shows. The royal takeover in 2005 only gave him a broader stage to exercise his oratorical skills and expand his national reach. Gagan’s mass appeal does not just come from his youth, which is obviously a huge asset. He has also been quick to move beyond his party veterans (and many young leaders) who speak a very convoluted political jargon—narrow-minded, partisan, and mostly suited for closed-door intra-party debates—uninspiring to the political centre, and indeed the apolitical class. Continue reading →

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Gagan Thapa: Most Favoured in Nepali Congress

Posted on September 28, 2010 by | 8 Comments

By Kamal Raj Sigdel

gagan thapa nepali congress leader

With 2,061 votes in his kitty, Gagan Thapa, 34, stands out as the most favoured among the 25 new Nepali Congress Central Working Committee members elected from the open competition.

Gagan Thapa means business. At a gathering of party colleagues and friends before the Nepali Congress General Assembly last week, the young Turk said he was confident of victory in the party’s central working committee (CWC), “The challenge for me is to garner the highest number of votes.”

The votes were all counted on Monday (27 Sept). And true to his words, he was the No. 1. With 2,061 votes in his kitty, he stands out as the most favoured among the 25 new CWC members elected from the open competition.

However, this was not a surprise for many inside and outside the party. For, it was discernible before the election that the young man had managed to shore up support from a multiple sections of the party’s constituencies, including the youth, the establishment faction and obviously from his father-in-law, Arjun Narsingh KC, who stood only second after him.

Thapa himself, however, believes that his success is the reward for his loyalty to the party. “I remained disciplined at testing times,” said Thapa, whose request for a ticket to fight for the 2008 Constituent Assembly (CA) polls was turned down by then party president Girija Prasad Koirala. He was later nominated as a CA member from the proportional representation quota. Continue reading →

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Nepali Congress General Convention Message: Unity Essential

Posted on September 28, 2010 by | 1 Comment

By Anil Giri
[List of winning candidates]
For the record: With the final election results of the Nepali Congress on Monday (27 Sept) giving a verdict for a mixed composition of its 61-member new Central Working Committee (CWC) for a four-year term, maintaining ‘unity’ and working in tandem on national issues will be a serious challenge to both the Sushil Koirala and Sher Bahadur Deuba camps. The neck-to-neck competition and sizeable representation of the Deuba camp (29 CWC members) in the CWC may serve as a strong opposition to the Koirala camp (32 CWC members) in the party.

As the elected president, Koirala has the authority to nominate another 21 CWC members, subject to the approval of CWC. Many party insiders are hoping that the president uses his prerogative to heal the party after a divisive election.

One interesting feature of the election is that a majority of the new faces in CWC from the open and zonal seats are of the Deuba faction. Shanker Bhandari, Manmohan Bhattarai, Surendra Pandey, Jeevan Bahadur Shahi and Kishor Singh Rathor are the pro-Deuba new faces in the CWC.

The Koirala camp has secured 14 seats in the open category, 9 in zonal seats, 10 in reserved seats while the Deuba camp bagged 11 in the open category, 5 in zonal seats and 12 in reserved seats. There is speculation that some elected CWC members who contested the election from the Koirala camp but had been close to the Deuba camp, could return to the Deuba faction. Continue reading →

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Nepali Congress: New Leadership, Old Challenges

Posted on September 23, 2010 by | 5 Comments
sushil koirala

sushil koirala

The 12th General Convention of the Nepali Congress on Tuesday (21 Sept) elected Acting President Sushil Koirala the party’s new president. Sushil secured 1,652 votes in contrast to his contenders Sher Bahadur Deuba 1,317 and Bhim Bahadur Tamang 78. Fifteen votes were declared invalid.

As per the party’s statute, a winning candidate must secure at least 50 percent plus one vote from the total turnout, which was 3,062 in Tuesday’s election. According to the Central Election Committee of the party, 20 representatives, including founder member Krishna Prasad Bhattarai, who was critically ill, remained absent due to various reasons. Bhattarai had written a letter to the Acting President a few days ago expressing his inability to attend the convention as, he said, the NC had drifted away from its original ideology of constitutional monarchy.

nepali congress flag

nepali congress flag

The election committee had prepared nine different ballot papers to simplify the election process. The papers were prepared to separate the posts of different categories, including the president, office bearers, and CWC members from the open and reservation quotas.

Unlike the election committee’s estimation that it would take 12 minutes in an average for a person to complete voting on the given nine ballot papers, the actual average time spent by a voter was 25 to 30 minutes. To speed up the election process, booth arrangements were made to enable over 40 voters to cast their ballot simultaneously.

Singh new NC gen secy; Yadav treasurer

prakash man singh and chitralekha yadav

Reaching out to one another:Newly elected Nepali Congress General Secretary Prakash Man Singh and Treasurer Chitra Lekha Yadav exchange congratulations in the Nepali Congress party office at Sanepa, Lalitpur, on Wednesday (22 Sept).

Continue reading →

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Nepali Congress General Convention: A Kind request from Sahids’ Families

Posted on September 17, 2010 by | 1 Comment

Dear Nepali Congress Leaders,

Jay Nepal from Shahids’ family members!

Nepali Congress’s (NC) 12 General Convention has begun today. Apparently, there will be over 300 candidates competing for various NC Central positions. It is important for all us to think who will be in the central office and who will represent us in the national politics.

My senior died in a young age for democracy in Bandipur, Tanahun in 2007 sal (Bikram Sambat which is 1950 AD). There were five other Sahids who perished in that historic moment. NC has given birth to hundreds of Sahids between 2007 Sal and now. Sahids’ families are hopeful that NC leaders will remember those Sahids, their sacrifices, and the hardship the family went through after their senior male figure perished for bigger causes.

We the members of Sahids’ families are very close to each other and we keep in touch frequently. Our only wish is to see the consolidated democracy in the country and democratic values within Nepali Congress. We request for your full support in the following 3 issues, which are important to us.

1) Our Voice: So far, we feel that there is no direct means of communication with central leaders for us. Thus, there should be at least one representation from Sahids’ families from entire Nepal in the Central Committee. It can be even nominated. Though, there are many Sahid family members involved in NC’s day to day politics, so far, no one has become a Central Committee Member.

2) Respect Sahid: One way of doing so will be to promote genuine leaders who are close to the grassroots, who promote NC’s historic legacy and NC ideals. Last 15 years have been very painful for Sahids’ families from Tanahun, which saw corrupt-ring-leader Govinda Raj Joshi representing the historic Bandipur area (Tanahun 1). Previously, Ram Chandra Poudel was elected from the Bandipur region (Tanahun 1). After the midterm election of 90′s, Poudel handed over this glorious region to Joshi and Poudel went to contest from an easier constituency (Tanahun 2). Till now, Joshi is ruling this region with the help of money and “Lathait” muscles. But not with people’s heart and respect. Sahid’s families of Tanahun do not want to see Joshi representing us. Even in the NC Central Office. Hope you understand our feeling and frustration. Please remember the faces of these corrupt leaders, who have been disrespectful to NC and Sahids, when you go for the General Convention/voting.

3) Recognize genuine/true leaders: Genuine leaders, who kept the parties hope alive during a difficult time, should be promoted. Not sidelined. Again, I would like to give an example from Tahanun. Mr. Ram Chandra Pokhrel, who got involved in politics in early age, spent 2 years in jail in 2017 Sal at the age of 17, he has very clean political image, he is a prolific writer and respected leader. In Tanahun, he is the only leader who communicates with Sahids’ families, visits our families and constantly asks for our opinion. Sadly, Mr. Pokhrel has been sidelined for too long and he has not been able to be a Member of Central Committee. We heard from the newspapers that he is running for CC membership (25 seats). Please remember Sahids, Sahids’ families and genuine leaders like Mr. Pokhrel, when you go to vote.

Our best wishes for more vibrant and democratic Nepali Congress.

Puskar Magar
(For Sahid’s families)
——————-
Bharatpur, Chitwan
Currently United Arab Emirate
E-mail: puskarmagar@yahoo.com

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Finally, Nepali Congress Goes Democratic

Posted on November 4, 2009 by | 4 Comments

Finally, something significantly positive has come out from any Nepali Congress meeting in recent times. The grand old party of Nepal has decided to choose the democratic process in electing leadership over virtual presidential decree. With this the almost dictatorial hold of NC President Girija Prasad Koirala over the party has come to an end.

The party today (Wednesday) adopted a resolution to that effect (‘institutional leadership’) at the fourth and last day of Mahasamiti convention- it’s highest and policymaking body. The resolution that was endorsed by the full house of the meeting has curtailed the landslide nomination rights of the party president; make it more inclusive, elections on some major post including party central committee members and office bearers. Continue reading →

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Nepali Congress, GO for Democracy

Posted on November 2, 2009 by | 2 Comments

One of the biggest reasons for the failure of democracy in Nepal in the 90s is the lack of democracy in the then largest democratic party of Nepal: the Nepali Congress. Girija Prasad Koirala, the paramount leader of the party- then and now- is responsible for that. He, along with other leaders like KP Bhattarai and Ganesh Man Singh, tried to run the party as if it was their club. No wide consultation was done before taking any vital decisions by a party so mass-based in Nepali context. The President of the party is like a dictator. The President, for the past several years, is Koirala. Continue reading →

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Nepali Congress Preconditions

Posted on May 13, 2008 by | 28 Comments

NC and UML have set preconditions for their support to a Maoist-led future government

Central committee meetings of the second and third largest political parties in the newly constituted Constituent Assembly took the decision yesterday after days of deliberation on whether to join a Maoist-led coalition or remain outside.

The preconditions:

>Dissolution of the Maoist people’s army, people’s courts and people’s government- as per the agreement that the Maoists have already entered into but have always ignored in practice.
>Dissolution of the semi-military structure of the Young Communist League.
>A time-bound plan to integrate the Maoist army and dispose of or surrender their weapons to the state.
>Maoists return the property looted or captured by them.
>Rehabilitate displaced people and stop intimidation, threats and extortion.
>Amend the constitution before the CA meeting (for implementing the republic through its first meeting and have provision to remove the PM by a simple majority.) Continue reading →

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Artless Drama in Nepali Congress

Posted on April 27, 2008 by | 34 Comments

Displaying the height of immorality in Nepali politics, NC President Girija Prasad Koirala rejects the resignation of Sushil. On his part, greedy and immoral Sushil happily accepts Girija’s decision.

If you didn’t know already, get it now: Nepali Congress, the party of Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala, today staged an artless drama that is so dirty and stinky. Today is the day for all those NC supporters and those who voted for the party to bow their head with shame. Koirala, who is also the President of NC, today rejected Sushil Koirla’s resignation as the party’s acting president. Sushil Koirala declared his resignation from the party leadership immediately after his defeat in the April 10 Constituent Assembly (CA) polls. Continue reading →

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