Kathmandu, November 2

Nepali Congress General Secretary Shashank Koirala today said the party’s Maha Samiti meet could be postponed due to ‘technical reasons’.

The NC Central Working Committee had decided to hold its Maha Samiti meeting in Kathmandu from November 21 to 25 to amend its statute in line with the country’s federal set-up and electoral constituency delineation.

The NC’s statute drafting committee is working on the draft amendment which will be presented to the CWC for endorsement before taking it to the Maha Samiti.

However, Koirala said since the draft amendment must be endorsed by the CWC before going to the Maha Samiti, when the Maha Samiti would be held would depend on the CWC. “Since we have a huge CWC, discussions might take time, leading to postponement of Maha Samiti,” Koirala told journalists on the sidelines of a tea reception the party organised today at its headquarters in Sanepa, Lalitpur, on the occasion of Vijaya Dashami, Tihar, Nepal Sambat and Chhath festivals. “If the Maha Samiti has to be postponed, it will be done on the basis of consensus.”

Koirala’s statement comes at a time when rival factions of the party led by Krishna Prasad Sitaula and senior leader Ramchandra Paudel are accusing the establishment faction of deliberately planning to postpone the Maha Samiti and General Convention to extend their grip on the party.

NC Spokesperson Bishwa Prakash Sharma said the date for the Maha Samiti meet was decided by the CWC and a decision to postpone the meet would also be taken by the CWC.

However, another leader representing the establishment faction led by NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba said since the CWC was unlikely to meet before Tihar and Chhath festivals, discussions on the draft amendment might not be completed in time. “In that case, the Maha Samiti has to be postponed,” the leader said.

A member of the statute drafting committee said it was almost certain that the Maha Samiti would be postponed by at least a month since the panel had not completed its work on the draft amendment.

Leaders representing rival factions, however, stressed the Maha Samiti should be organised on the stipulated date even if that required working overtime to finalise the draft statute and other issues.

Paudel said it was important to address problems facing the party at the earliest and postponement of Maha Samiti was not in the party’s interest. “The need of the hour is to address problems in the party and start preparations for the next general elections,” he said.

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