KATHMANDU, Jan 1: Nepali Congress (NC) Spokesperson Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat has said that the party’s general secretaries—Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma—cannot hold party President Sher Bahadur Deuba responsible for the failure to convene the party’s general convention on time.
Speaking on Nagarik Frontline, a digital discussion programme of Nagarik, on Wednesday, Dr Mahat said it would be “unfortunate” to blame the party president, as the primary responsibility for fixing the convention schedule and managing the process lies with the general secretaries themselves.
He recalled that the proposal to hold the general convention was initiated by the general secretaries, who were also entrusted with leading the convention management committee.
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“The general secretaries themselves are the coordinators of the management committee,” Mahat said. “Those who were at the steering wheel cannot now say the process failed because of others or the party president. We endorsed the proposal they brought. Claiming a lack of time now and shifting blame to the chair or others is simply wrong.”
Dr Mahat maintained that President Deuba had delegated full authority and responsibility to the general secretaries in accordance with the party statute and had not obstructed the process.
“The party president exercised his authority as stipulated in the statute,” he said. “Taking responsibility and then blaming only the chair or others when things do not work out helps no one.”
He also suggested that the proposed timeline for the convention was unrealistic from the outset. “When the schedule was presented, I said even then that it would only be possible if the work progressed at ‘rocket speed’,” Mahat said. “But the reality was different. Even the issue of active membership remained unresolved. Now they too have realised that holding the convention within this timeframe is not possible.”
Dr Mahat urged the general secretaries to act responsibly, warning that the party cannot be strengthened by undermining its leadership or by leaders turning against one another.
