Two weeks after the oath-taking ceremony of the House of Representatives members, the Nepali Congress has still not been able to select its parliamentary party leader. Party President Gagan Kumar Thapa’s attempt to appoint a consensus leader has been delayed due to disagreements between Arjun Narasingh KC and Mohan Acharya. Although an election committee was formed on Chaitra 24 (April 7), the absence of agreement postponed the election of the party leader. (Chaitra 26, Kathmandu)
Despite the members of the House of Representatives taking their oaths two weeks ago, the Nepali Congress has yet to finalize the parliamentary party leader. President Gagan Kumar Thapa’s efforts to reach a consensus contributed to the delay. Additionally, senior proportional representation member Arjun Narasingh KC’s role in presiding over the House sessions has also caused postponements. KC was relieved from the chairmanship of the parliament after the Speaker election held on Falgun 22 (March 6).
The Congress stated that KC plans to advance the parliamentary party leader selection process only after fully stepping down as Speaker. The party had formed an election committee under the coordination of General Secretary Prakash Rasaili ‘Snehi’ on Chaitra 24 (April 7) to proceed with the leadership selection. However, the committee did not advance the process, and no official notification was released under Rasaili’s leadership.
President Thapa mentioned that discussions are ongoing to appoint the parliamentary party leader by consensus, which led to the Rasaili committee refraining from moving forward and postponing the election scheduled for Chaitra 24. A Congress leader noted, “President Thapa wants to appoint Arjun Narasingh as the unanimous party leader; otherwise, he won’t be made leader. Arjun Narasingh is also willing to contest the election. This has caused delays in selecting the party leader.” Another senior leader attributed the delay to efforts for consensus.
“Delays have occurred due to attempts to block Arjun Narasingh, appoint another candidate, and then secure consensus on that candidate,” the leader said. “A decision will be reached within Chaitra (April).” According to a party official, both President Thapa and Deputy President Bishwaprakas Sharma are reluctant to have KC as the leader. However, pressure from lawmakers has boosted KC’s morale. The official said, “Neither Gagan nor Bishwajeet want KC as leader, but many parliamentarians believe KC should lead, raising his confidence.”
It is understood that the non-establishment faction within Congress is encouraging KC to expose President Thapa. A general secretary said, “It seems there is an effort to expose Gaganji. Leaders like Purnabahadur Khadka and Dr. Shekhar Koirala are personally supporting KC to become party leader.” President Thapa, on the other hand, prefers Mohan Acharya, a directly elected lawmaker from Rasuwa, as the party leader. However, Congress leaders reported that consensus around Acharya’s name has not been achieved.
A senior leader commented, “Though Mohan Acharya is the President’s favored candidate, he cannot secure consensus. Regardless of party president, efforts will be made to elect a leader by consensus.” Similarly, proportional representation MP Bhishma Raj Andembe, elected as a general secretary in the 14th General Convention, is also interested in becoming the parliamentary party leader. Three days ago, Congress leaders met with KC to discuss consensus, where KC requested the creation of a conducive environment for his uncontested leadership and cautioned that he would run as a candidate if such support was not fostered.
Sources indicate the non-establishment group is likely to assist KC in becoming the party leader. KC has asked President Thapa to appoint him as the unanimous party leader. However, the party’s parliamentary history indicates no consensus leader has been selected since 2007 BS (1951 AD). Accordingly, this time as well, leader selection is expected to proceed by vote. For the parliament formed after the 2079 BS (2022 AD) general election, Congress had initiated a voting process for leader selection. In the election held on Falgun 21 (March 5), candidate nominations were signed by both President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Gagan Kumar Thapa — Deuba signing the proportional representation list, Thapa approving direct election tickets.
Of the 38 MPs elected through both direct and proportional representation systems, the establishment faction dominates direct seats while non-establishment members hold more proportional representation seats. Sources say the establishment faction counts 16 MPs and the non-establishment faction 22 MPs. Among them, 15 MPs are close to outgoing President Deuba and 7 align with Koirala. However, recent internal divisions have complicated the exact determination of MP affiliations.
