KATHMANDU, AUGUST 2

After being ousted from power by the Neplai Congress and CPN-UML, former prime minister and CPN-MC chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal has decided to lay the groundwork to reclaim popular support and re-energize his party. However, experts believe that people will no longer support Dahal in the same way they did in the past as they are desperately seeking alternatives.

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Political columnist Chandra Kishore emphasised that Pushpa Kamal Dahal's comments and stances at this point are understandable. 'There are two paths to power-either through Parliament or through the streets. However, the CPN-MC is losing ground in both locations; at least, this is how declining seats in parliament portray the CPN-MC. This is the question for Dahal and the entire party,' he said.

'After gaining power, Dahal forgot the agendas that put him in power. But now is the time for Dahal to find his heir. He took the CPN-MC at its peak and achieved complete success. So, now is the time. He welcomes a new face and brings back hope to the people.'

He also argued that the people would not sacrifice their lives and become martyrs for Dahal. 'Since Dahal's time is up, it would be better if he stopped expecting that people would endorse him again. That seems far from attainable,' he added.

On the other hand, talking with the Himalayan Times Deputy General Secretary of CPN-MC, Haribol Gajurel, expressed that there is no alternative to Dahal. 'This is the time to support Dahal constructively in order to regain the hold that the CPN-MC has been losing over time,' he told THT.

Meanwhile, Dahal has stated that the party will fight the 2027 election alone. Speaking at a welcome program for new entrants in the party central office in Paris Danda on Sunday, Dahal informed the running party office bearer's meeting that the party has been discussing the possibility of fighting the election on its own.

'We have reached a critical juncture. This will strengthen the CPN-MC and play a critical role in ensuring good governance in the country,' Dahal stated.

Furthermore, Dahal is planning to go on a nationwide tour soon to learn about the public's attitudes toward the party. 'To hear the people's complaints, the party chair will go on the national tour,' Gajurel told THT. 'Now is the appropriate time to act on behalf of the public, as relations between the party and the general public have deteriorated.'

Dahal will embark on the nationwide tour following the conclusion of the party's central committee meeting, which begins August 10.

Chandra Kishore said, 'These are the tricks that political leaders use to exploit the helpless when they are ousted from power. Dahal wielded power for over 30 years. Now he must recharge himself and party in order to regain the popular vote, which is decreasing.'

Some recent reports indicate that the party's voter base has shrunk significantly and recent election results support this. In the 2022 general elections, the CPN-MC received the third-highest proportional representation vote-11.1 percent. It was at 15.3 percent in 2017. The party emerged as the largest party in the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections, the first since joining mainstream politics following the decade-long Maoist insurgency. The party's parliamentarians have also decreased from 54 to 32 in the 2022 elections.

In 2017, the CPN-MC contested local, provincial, and federal elections in coalition with the CPN-UML, and in 2022, it did so with the Nepali Congress.

Additionally, the CPN-MC has shrunk to just 17 directly elected seats, down from 36 in 2017 and 120 in 2008. In the proportional representation vote, the CPN-MC has roughly the same strength as the Rastriya Swatantra Party, an independent party formed just six months before the election.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal does not have a public mandate to be prime minister, despite his confident declarations prior to the polls. He is not even eligible to lead his CPN-MC, which is no longer the kingmaker, according to experts.

'Although Dahal claimed to have the magical number, he was only able to hold power because of conflicts between CPN-UML Chair KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Congress Sher Bahadur Deuba, and the other smaller parties capitalised on their disagreements,' Chandra Kishor added. 'However, there is a slim chance of Dahal returning to the PM Chair, so he is pushing himself to the ground.'

The CPN-MC will now launch the campaign in all 6,743 wards throughout the country, according to party leaders.