In his strongly-worded speech during Saturday’s closed-session at the party’s ongoing national convention in Biratnagar, the Maoist ideologue said though the concept of formation of a powerful communist centre appears correct in principle, it will be “counterprodutive” for the party.

Dahal in his political document presented on Friday proposed such a centre to press the cause of proletariat class but his deputy did not subscribe to his proposal. Bhattarai challenged the party chairman to come up with a clear ideological ground for such polarisation and unification.

Bhattarai also expressed his dissatisfaction over Dahal’s position on promulgation of a new constitution.

“The chairman’s document states that chances of promulgation of a new constitution are gradually becoming

slim. It suggests the party is indifferent to the new constitution. It will send out a wrong message, which is harmful for the party,” Bhattarai said, reading out his seven-point document.

Dahal has underlined a need to form an alliance with the like-mined parties and groups, claiming that there is still no guarantee of promulgation a new constitution this time too. Bhattarai presented written comments on Dahal’s political document, which he said is not a separate document. After the party’s poor show in the November 19 election, Bhattarai has challenged both Dahal’s leadership and ideology saying that it cannot run the party.

Bhattarai, who is advocating for the line of peace and constitution since the party’s Chunwang meet in 2005, said the party’s immediate policy should be promulgating a new progressive constitution from the Constituent Assembly (CA). “After the second CA election, our position has become weak but there is a high chance of promulgation of the new constitution. The party should work towards the same direction which would be beneficial for

both the party and revolution,” he said.

Bhattarai who was last week elected as a chairperson of Political Dialogue and Consensus Committee of the Constituent Assembly (CA), a powerful body inside the CA, warned that party would plunge into another ideological crisis if it deviated from the line of peace and constitution. Despite gaining a remarkable success in the first CA polls, he said, the UCPN (Maoist) failed to draft a new constitution under its leadership due to the unhealthy and harmful two-line struggle.

After the first CA in 2008, the party was divided over the line of peace and constitution and the revolt. The then Mohan Baidya faction of the party was against the line of peace and constitution, which was also Dahal’s position until 2011. However, Bhattarai has been advocating for promulgation of new CA since the very beginning.  

Meanwhile commenting on party Chairman Dahal’s document, senior leader Narayan Kaji Shrestha said the document was not complete. “The main spirit of this document is good but is not complete. It should be reformed,” he said.

Bhattarai counters

• Nothing new in Dahal's document

• Party should call general convention to formulate new ideology, leadership pattern

• Completion of constitution drafting process for socialist revolution

• It fails to realise the importance of a new political force

• No concrete plan for rebuilding the party organisations

BHIM GHIMIRE

BIRATNAGAR

Following pressure from youth leaders, the party has started preparations for the election of Central Committee members at the ongoing national convention in Biratnagar.

Election officer Dharma Sheela Chapagain said work had begun to prepare the voters’ list. As per the party statute, 74 members will be directly elected and the rest nominated in the 99-member CC.

Though older leaders were of the view that the CC members should be chosen in consensus, younger ones pressed for a vote to elect the members in order to strengthen the party.  

The closed session of the convention was delayed for hours over disputes of legitimacy of the district convention representatives and failure to submit levy.

Team leaders demanded a direct voting system to elect the CC members, with some going as far as demanding the party chairman be elected through a direct vote.