Valley
UCPN (M) special meet to settle intra-party row
Top leaders of the UCPN (Maoist) on Wednesday agreed to call a special general convention to provide a permanent solution to the dispute, plaguing the party.The party is preparing for the jamboree after party’s senior leader Baburam Bhattarai refused to accept the party structure elected by the General Convention held in May. The party’s Central Committee meeting which will begin from September 17 is likely to announce the date of the convention.
According to party insiders, some of the supporters of Dahal are against holding the convention, saying that it can not resolve the party’s intra-party feud. Despite deep-rooted differences, top leaders Dahal, Bhattarai and Narayan Kaji Shrestha, during the meeting of former politburo members held at the party’s headquarters, assured that the party would remain united as it is a “historic necessity”.
In the meeting, Dahal said the party could be dissolve if the ongoing intra-party rift is not settled.
“Transformations should begin from the top leaders to keep the party united,” a leader quoted Dahal as saying. Bhattarai said the intra-party rift is a serious issue, but the party leadership should come up with a firm resolution for the settlement of the dispute. Vice-Chairman Shrestha expressed dissatisfaction over the delay in the transformation of the party, saying past decisions should be implemented immediately. The meeting decided to intensify discussions inside the party before taking decisions about special general conventions. Despite positive discussions at the top level, the Bhattarai faction has continued to form parallel party structures at the district level.
Bhattarai and his supporters have also been boycotting the meeting of standing committee and politburo, claiming that these bodies are not legitimate. Though the party held its general convention in May this year, it could not resolve the intra-party dispute after Bhattarai faction walked out from the jamboree expressing its dissatisfaction over the formation of party structures.
Leaders from both faction claim that there are clear ideological and organisational differences between the two leaders and only the general convention could resolve the problem. If such jamboree fails to bridge gaps, leaders say, the party would suffer a vertical split. Bhattarai is advocating for a “new political force”. However, Dahal has refused to accept such a proposition. “There have been positive discussions going on inside the party to keep the party united,” said Maoist leader Agni Sapkota. Devendra Poudel, a leader close to Bhattarai said the special convention would help resolve the rift within the party.