Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N) has failed to decide on its parliamentary party  (PP) leader with the top leaders Mahantha Thakur and Rajendra Mahato laying claim to the post.

The delay in PP leader selection, which has already stretched to four months, is likely to be pushed further with the recent postponement of the RJP-N parliamentary party meeting. While most party leaders are of the view that Thakur should become the PP leader, Mahato and his supporters feel differently about the matter.

Mahato has said that he should be the PP leader since Thakur’s health condition is ‘fragile’.

The RJP-N parliamentary party meeting was supposed to convene on Wednesday. But the meeting was postponed due to the absence of leader Mahendra Raya Yadav.

RJP-N Vice-chairman Brikhesh Chandra Lal said the meeting will sit after Yadav’s arrival.

He also expressed hope that the meeting will unanimously pick the PP leader. Mahato and his supporters have been pressing the party leadership to select the PP leader.

During the recent meeting of the party’s political committee, Mahato and other leaders had criticised the party leadership for failing to decide on the PP leader even after a long period.

The political committee meeting, which concluded on June 20, had also failed to take any decision regarding the statute of the RJP-N parliamentary party. Mahato said the party should endorse the statute before selecting the PP office-bearers.

The next committee meeting is scheduled for July 5. A task force formed to chalk out the statute is expected to present the draft statute at the meeting.  The RJP-N has 19 lawmakers in the federal parliament.