Kathmandu, March 22

For the first time in its history the Unified CPN-Maoist is mulling election of all its committees, including the central committee, through internal competition.

However, the leaders could not discuss the chairman’s proposal on the option of internal competition within all party committees for leadership, so a five-member taskforce was formed to formulate working procedures under the leadership of party Secretary Barshaman Pun.

Standing Committee member Lokendra Bista said the recent central committee meeting decided to elect all party committees through internal competition, including the central committee.

He said a taskforce has been formed to prepare a working procedure for suggesting about the election process to the central committee .

However, another standing committee member Gopal Kirati said party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal had presented the option of electing all the committees, but due to time constraint, the central committee could not decide.

Kirati, however, said he was for electing all the committees through internal competition unlike the existing system of higher bodies nominating the committees.

Central committee member Anjana Bishankhe also said the central committee has not decided on election of committees but was mulling it among other possible options.

She said election was essential, but that wouldn’t be like the one in the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML. “We don’t call it democratic practice but a new democratic practice and it will be different from those practiced by other parties,” he said.

With the departure of senior leader Baburam Bhattarai, who was expecting leadership of the party, Dahal is the only contender for the party’s leadership.

Kirati said internal competition was very essential to rejuvenate the party and no leader can resist pressure from the party now. “Now each and every leader is capable of leading their respective committees and the party cannot resist them,” he said.

A youth leader of the party Yubaraj Chaulagain claimed that the party cannot prosper without internal competition when they have to compete in each and every field outside the party committees.

Chaulagain, however, said election of the UCPN-M should not be influenced like those of NC and UML by money and muscles.

Recently a workshop was conducted by the party and many participating leaders had proposed internal competition.