Kathmandu, Sept 4 : The ruling CPN-UML is set to open its second Statute Convention this Friday, but internal tensions are surfacing. A dissatisfied faction has prepared a written dissenting document to present during the three-day convention. The differences center not only on former president Bidya Devi Bhandari’s membership renewal issue, but also on broader questions of party operations, government performance, and chairman KP Sharma Oli’s leadership style.
According to leaders outside the establishment camp, the dissent paper is nearly complete and will be adjusted depending on Oli’s response in Thursday’s secretariat meeting. Senior vice chair Ishwar Pokharel, vice chairs Surendra Pandey and Yubaraj Gyawali, along with standing committee member Karna Thapa, are leading the push. Thapa confirmed the move, saying that recent party decisions have created grounds for organized dissent and citing the precedent of People’s Multiparty Democracy (PMD), which was once formally established through debate and contestation.
General Secretary Shankar Pokharel, however, downplayed the dispute. In a press briefing, he said that leaders were disagreeing with the central committee’s decision on Bhandari’s membership, not with the official documents to be presented. He stressed that no one has questioned the party’s ideological foundation, and disagreements will be resolved through internal procedures.
Still, dissenting leaders argue that limiting debate to Bhandari’s case is misleading. They intend to raise concerns about decision-making practices and what they describe as ideological drift within the UML. They point to the central committee meeting weeks ago, where Pandey and Gyawali formally opposed the decision to deny Bhandari’s membership renewal, but their position was not recorded in party directives.
Preparations for the convention, which will be held at Sunrise Hall in Godavari, Lalitpur, are nearly finished. Around 2,341 participants, including 2,026 delegates and 315 organizers, are expected. Stages, media centers, volunteer teams, health support, and welcome gates are already in place. The convention will also elect the leadership of the central election commission.
Chairman Oli’s political report is expected to analyze domestic and international contexts, current challenges, and party direction, while framing socialism suited to Nepal under the guidance of PMD. Vice chair Bishnu Poudel will propose statute amendments that could restructure membership categories, remove the 70-year age cap, strengthen district committees, create a 251-member central committee, form a politburo, and establish a 15-member standing committee. General Secretary Pokharel’s organizational report will address structural problems, stability, national interest, and sovereignty. Other commissions, including discipline, accounts, and election bodies, will also present their reports.
Former president Bhandari, meanwhile, is hosting frequent meetings at her Thapagaun residence, signaling her continued influence and support-building among dissatisfied cadres. Leaders like Gyawali admit that while the membership dispute will be discussed, much larger issues will dominate. They emphasize that they are not forming a separate faction but exercising their right to debate, a tradition present even during the party’s underground years.
The establishment camp believes the convention will resemble the central committee meeting, with challenges contained. But the organized move by dissenters suggests the gathering will spotlight divisions over both leadership and direction inside Nepal’s ruling party.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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