UCPN-M puts off sister wings' conferences

HIMALAYAN NEWS SERVICE

KATHMANDU: Citing possible confrontation between the factions of the party’s workers’ unions led by Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Vice-chairmen Baburam Bhattarai and Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Unified CPN-Maoist today decided to postpone the national conferences of its sister wings.

Issuing a press statement here today, UCPN-M Spokesperson Agni Sapkota said the party decided to postpone the national conferences of its sister wings due to certain technical and other complexities. Sapkota said new dates for the conferences would be decided after consulting the concerned factions’ in-charge of the respective wings.

Since the party could not resolve the conflict in its women, workers’ and employees’ wings, the party was forced to stall the scheduled conferences.

However, the convener of the All Nepal Hotel and Restaurant Workers’ Union Prakash Shrestha said the party’s diktat could not be followed. According to Shrestha, they would go ahead with the conference as the representatives had already reached Pokhara for the conference. Moreover, the party has not yet informed him about the decision.

He said the direction was not meant for the ANHRWU as it was not the party’s sister wing in a strict sense. He claimed that the party had not clearly mentioned the ANHRWU in the press statement. Party’s senior leader Janardan Sharma and Shalikram Jammarkattel are scheduled to inaugurate the fourth national conference of the union. Sharma said he was consulting the party to decide whether to attend the conference or not.

While Hom Subedi, who is close to Bhattarai, said they were compelled to organise a press conference because the leaders close to Dahal have been taking unilateral decisions and appointing their loyal in the organising committees. Dahal’s faction of the ANHRWU has expelled Subedi, accusing him of trying to foil the conference.