‘President Bhandari, Veep Pun may be re-elected’

Kathmandu, February 20

CPN-UML leader Pradip Gyawali said President Bidhya Devi Bhandari and Vice-president Nanda Bahadur Pun are likely to be re-elected to their posts in elections slated next month.

It may be mentioned that President Bhandari had held a luncheon meeting with Oli and Dahal at Shital Niwas on February 3 which lasted for five hours. The president had shown keen interest to become the president again during the meeting. She was elected president two years ago in 2015 after the new constitution was promulgated.

Vice-president Nanda Bahadur Pun has also shown keen interest to become the vice-president again. He had gone to meet Oli at his residence in Balkot, Bhaktapur, recently.

President Bhandari had hosted a dinner party for Dahal’s family last month.

Speaking at an interaction organised here today by Reporter’s Club, Gyawali termed Monday’s agreement between the UML and the CPN-Maoist Centre ‘historic’.

Oli and Dahal have agreed to take turns to lead the government and co-chair the party until the first general convention of the unified party.

The parties yesterday formed two task forces to finalise organisational structure and statute of the unified party, and to draft the party’s political document. On the recommendation of task forces, the central committees of both the parties will be dissolved and a central committee of the unified party will be formed as an interim measure until the general convention.

The first task force includes Ishwor Pokharel, Bishnu Poudel, Gokarna Bistha, Beduram Bhusal and Surendra Pandey from the UML, and Ram Bahadur Thapa, Giriraj Mani Pokharel, Janardan Sharma, Matrika Yadav and Barshman Pun from the CPN-MC.

Members of the second task force include Madhav Kumar Nepal, Bhim Rawal, Pradip Gyawali, Raghuji Panta and Subas Chandra Nembang from the UML; and Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Dev Gurung, Pampha Bhusal and Devendra Poudel from the CPN-MC.

Although the top two leaders have reached a gentleman’s agreement to take turns to lead the party and the government, the general convention will decide what is to be done. For now, Oli is the PM for the next five years, according to CPN-MC Chair Dahal.