KATHMANDU, MAY 9 Former Nepal Students Union president Dujang Sherpa has expressed deep dissatisfaction with the Nepali Congress party's refusal to grant the student wing functional autonomy. In an interview with The Himalayan Times, Sherpa stated that despite the NSU Senate passing a resolution for independence, the party leadership has reportedly refused to discuss it for more than two months. According to him, the main point of contention is the party's refusal to approve the NSU constitution. Unlike other sister organisations that have received their statutes, the NSU is still on hold. Without this approval, the union is legally unable to hold its General Convention. He claimed that the delay has continued for two years, even after the party's own General Convention and subsequent elections. 'The main sad part is that the current party leadership is made up entirely of former NSU leaders. We passed NSU as a functional autonomy in its constitution... However, the leadership did not discuss it once during the two months,' he stated. 'NSU and other sister organisations' issues are different. The party has not given the NSU its statute or constitution. NSU cannot hold its General Convention until the party central committee members pass the constitution.' Sherpa emphasised that the NSU proposed a model in which they would no longer need financial support from the Nepali Congress. The union intends to fund its own operations and conventions through a global network of alumni and supporters. The goal is to remain ideologically aligned with the party while operating independently and focusing solely on student rights. 'If the party passes [the constitution], then we will not take a penny from the party. We will only have an ideological affiliation with the party. That will create an environment in which NSU can conduct its activities solely on the basis of students' rights,' Sherpa argued. He accused current party leaders, including President Thapa, of stalling the process in order to maintain control. While the party claims the current 750-member central committee is too large to manage, Sherpa argues that the party imposed this size on them. They contend that the party leadership is purposefully leaving a void so that loyalists or pawns who put party interests ahead of student movements can take the place of independent student voices. 'The party leadership are looking for their pawns... [Student leaders] are again going to the leaders' homes for leadership rather than the colleges. They are trying to make student leaders their loyalists-not only their loyalists, but their pawns,' he asserted. He further lamented that the delay should be seen as a threat to the broader democratic movement in Nepal. If the student union-traditionally the most powerful opposition force-is weakened or controlled by the party, there is concern that the government will be held less accountable, potentially leading to an autocratic environment in which student issues are ignored. 'If there is no strong student leader, the government will become increasingly autocratic. They will not face any opposition. We need student leaders who care about the integrity of the student movement.'