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Kathmandu, Dec 13: CPN UML Chair KP Sharma Oli has backed off his own proposal to increase the number of party office bearers.

At Friday’s Secretariat meeting, Oli had proposed amending the party statute to add two vice chairs and two secretaries. The move would have raised the number of office bearers from 15 to 19. After pressure from leaders outside the establishment camp, he withdrew the proposal. The meeting decided to keep the number unchanged at 15.

“One proposal was to add two vice chairs and two secretaries to make it 19 office bearers,” a senior leader said. “But issues like term limits came up, and the chair concluded that increasing the number was not the right step.”

Leaders from the non-establishment side objected, saying the proposal arose because Oli was struggling to manage leaders within the party. “Some even argued that if the statute is to be changed within three months, all other posts should be scrapped and the party should run with only a chair and a general secretary,” a leader said.

Senior Vice Chair Ishwar Pokhrel, vice chairs Yubaraj Gyawali, Asta Laxmi Shakya, Surendra Pandey, and secretaries Yogesh Bhattarai and Gokarna Bista opposed the proposal. Pokhrel has already announced his candidacy for party chair.

The UML statute convention held on Bhadra 20 to 22 had reduced the number of office bearers. The statute currently provides for 15 members: one chair, three vice chairs, one general secretary, three deputy general secretaries, and seven secretaries.

However, Oli proposed reverting to the earlier 19-member structure at the Secretariat meeting. The party’s 2078 convention had elected 19 office bearers under that model. Oli’s bid to return to the old structure was rejected by the meeting.