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Kathmandu, Jan 12: Nepali Congress General Secretary Gagan Thapa has urged party president Sher Bahadur Deuba to resign, saying the time has come for a leadership change.

Speaking at the opening session of the party’s Special General Convention in Kathmandu on Sunday, Thapa reminded Deuba that party leaders had already asked him to take a rest on September 10. He said it made little sense for leaders who had already stepped back to return to active politics after listening to a few voices.

From the Bhrikutimandap stage, Thapa delivered a blunt message. He said he had personally visited Deuba and acknowledged his long contribution to democracy, but stressed that the moment had arrived for him to step aside, rest, and clear the path for new leadership.

Thapa said the outcome of the special convention remained open and urged Deuba to attend the closed session on Monday morning, noting that there was still time. In indirect terms, he warned that since a majority of delegates stood with the convention, Deuba faced a choice: resign, accept the convention, or risk being removed from leadership.

He said the convention was not called by the central committee but emerged from pressure at the grassroots. The demand, he added, was to change both policy and leadership. Thapa said he himself had come only after being called and would accept whatever decision the convention hall made.

Thapa acknowledged Deuba’s long struggle for democracy and said history would remember his role if he handed over leadership smoothly. Past missteps, he said, would fade in public memory. He recalled Deuba’s own claim after the Gen Z movement that he had stepped back from everything, a move that earned him praise even beyond party lines.

Thapa also said he had urged senior leaders and acting office bearers to step forward to lead, but none agreed. He insisted he had no desire to become party president or prime minister and said the call for the convention came from a sense of duty to citizens, not personal ambition.

People’s News Monitoring Service