Despite suffering its worst electoral defeat in the recently concluded House of Representatives and provincial assembly elections, a change in the Nepali Congress leadership appears to be unlikely in the near future.

Some youth leaders have already started a campaign for what they call rebuilding the party but there is a sort of consensus among the top leaders that the time is not appropriate for leadership change. The incumbent Congress leadership was elected through the party’s 13th general convention in 2016. The tenure of the party president is five years.

Top leaders like Ram Chandra Poudel, General Secretary Shashank Koirala and senior leaders Prakash Man Singh and Krishna Prasad Sitaula are on the same page that all the leaders are collectively responsible for the party’s poll debacle. Leaders close to party President Sher Bahadur Deuba have snubbed calls for leadership change.

A group of youth leaders has already begun a campaign to rebuild the party. They are busy preparing a common document to be presented in the party’s Central Working Committee. The next meeting of youth leaders is taking place on Wednesday to

prepare a concept note on party rebuilding. There are calls from youth leaders to convene the NC Mahasamiti meeting and general convention to discuss the party’s worst showing in elections.

NC senior leader Poudel, who leads a rival faction in the party, is in no mood to float a proposal for leadership change. In a meeting attended by 20 chiefs of the party’s district committees, Poudel argued that it was time for making the party more united.

“There have been weaknesses of the party leadership for the poor election results but this is the time to make the party united,” he told the meeting. Poudel reportedly told the district chiefs that all should support the party leadership in “this difficult time”.

CWC member Nabindra Raj Joshi, who is close to Poudel, told the Post that chances of change in the party leadership in the near future are slim. “There will be detailed discussions in the party after the results of the proportional representation election are out,” said Joshi.

General Secretary Koirala also shares similar views about a change in leadership. In the House of Representatives election, the NC won only 23 out of the 165 seats under the first-past-the-post category. The NC is planning to call a meeting of the Central Working Committee to discuss the post-election scenario. Second-rung leaders fear losing their grip on the party if they supported the campaign of youth leaders to change the leadership, a leader said requesting anonymity. “That is why they are supporting the incumbent leadership” even after a humiliating defeat, he added.