The main opposition Nepali Congress has become a divided house once again. This is happening at a time when the country needs a united voice in the opposition front to check the government’s wrongdoings and to play the role of a constructive opposition. Division in Congress is troubling for both for parliamentary democracy and the party itself. Sadly, the cause of fresh conflict within the opposition party has been party president himself. President Sher Bahadur Deuba unilaterally decided to defer the party’s 13th general convention by one year, at a time when the leaders within the party are calling for holding the convention as early as possible. The leaders belonging to rival factions led by Ram Chandra Paudel and Krishna Prasad Sitaula had boycotted the meeting that took this decision. As a matter fact, well-meaning Congress leaders have been demanding timely general convention ever since the party badly lost the 2017 general elections. Thus Deuba should not have deferred the convention, though the party statute allows him to do so in special circumstances. Since there were no special circumstances that would have made NC unable to hold the general convention on time, the convention should have been held in February/March this year.
The decision of party president Deuba to defer the general convention for a year has caused a sharp division within the party. While the rival faction led by Paudel is standing against the president’s decision, the one led by Sitaula is also accusing the president of running the party arbitrarily. There have been growing concerns within the party that Congress will never be able rise up to its former position as long as Deuba remains in the driving seat. It is unfortunate that the party chief has failed to address the voices of dissent and is increasingly seen as the cause of problems rather than the solution. This will make the party weak and will frustrate the cadres who want to see their leaders stand united for the cause of consolidating the organization. This is exactly what has happened within the party and among its leaders and cadres at the local level.
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Disunity in Congress will also have consequences for the country. Ever since it lost the elections in 2017, one major complaint against Nepali Congress has been that it has never been able to present itself as the effective opposition in the parliament. This is true. Congress seems complicit in wrongdoing in cases which implicate its leaders. Besides, because the opposition party has not been able to present itself assertively, the government seems to be coming up with one after another controversial bill with the provisions that could potentially curtail the freedom of expression and civil rights guaranteed by the constitution. Congress has not been able to come forward against such bills because the party itself is in shambles at the moment. There is a lot for the opposition party to do: Speak against the government wrongdoings, debate the government’s policies and forward alternative perspectives. The party does not seem to be doing any of these because, among other things, of continuing internal wrangling. Congress leaders now need to bridge their differences and stand united so as to be able to intervene and exert pressure on the government to correct the flawed decisions. For this, however, it has to be able to give the message of internal unity first of all. And holding general convention on time is equally important to revive the party structure. As the president, onus lies on Sher Bahadur Deuba.
