The ongoing Central Working Committee (CWC) meeting of the Nepali Congress that is being live-streamed to the audience for the first time in the party’s history lacks a structured and focussed debate.

A joint meeting of the party’s office bearers and former office bearers on Sunday had set the agenda for the meeting, which is taking place after a gap of almost a year. The party’s statute requires the meeting to be held every two months. But the ongoing meeting of the committee has failed to follow the agendas set by the office bearers as they mostly targeted party president Sher Bahadur Deuba and two general secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma in their remarks.

The joint meeting of the office bearers and former office bearers had decided to focus the discussion on current issues, presenting the decision of the work execution committee for the central committee’s approval, the proposed action plan on strengthening the party organisation, determining the date and place for the Congress policy convention, announcement of a national campaign for the party’s revival, discussing the report of the disciplinary committee, and the role of the Nepali Congress in Parliament.

Most of the members speaking at the meeting in the last four days criticised the party leaders. Some others disputed former home minister Bal Krishna Khand’s arrest, flaying the party president Deuba and the general secretaries for failing to improve the party’s image.

“No one is seriously discussing or raising their voice for boosting the party's image, building up the party organisational base, on how to present themselves effectively in the House and the government and how and when the meeting of the policy convention will be called. The party's two general secretaries have made some proposals on the first day of the meeting, but no one seems bothered about them,” one central member said.

The committee members are also not paying attention to reviving the party organisation as there is extreme frustration against the party’s leadership among the general public, party leaders, and cadres due to rampant corruption and bad governance, another leader said. “Our focus should be on how to bridge the gap between the party and the people, but we are only focused on how to nudge Deuba, Thapa, and Sharma.”

“The Nepali Congress should find out how to deliver [services] to the people and how we can ensure good governance,” said Prakash Man Singh, former vice-president of the party. “As we are in government, we have to work in order to improve the party’s image.”

“We are discussing at the central committee meeting what people expect from us and what we are giving them,” said Singh. “Several local units are now led by us so we should instruct our representatives to work in favour of the people.”

Singh also urged Congress chief Deuba to run the party as per its charter by addressing complaints against him for not running the party in a democratic manner.

Deuba is facing ire for not giving a full shape to the various party departments, not being able to hold the general convention of the party’s sister organisations, and for failing to address the complaints about the party’s weak performance in the government and in parliament. The party is the largest party in parliament and has the biggest share in the government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

“This meeting has widened the rift between the party president and the general secretaries,” Bal Bahadur KC, another member, said at the meeting.

“Admittedly, the ideology, organisation, and leadership of the party have been weakened for various reasons.”

At a time when a party has come under huge criticism for not taking action against the former home minister Khand, who is in jail for different charges, including his involvement in the fake Bhutanese refugee scam, several party leaders on Friday also came forward to his defence. Leaders like Gopalman Shrestha, Min Bishwakarma, and Jeet Jung Basnet among others came in defence of the tainted Khand saying that the party should stand by him in a difficult situation.

A long-time lieutenant of Deuba, Khand is in judicial custody over several charges in the fake Bhutanese refugee scam, and leaders close to Deuba came to his defence at the ongoing meeting.

“We could have saved Khand from being sent to jail. Why did we not stop it?” said Gopalman Shrestha. “The final decision on whether Khand had made a mistake or not is yet to come, and if the case is under consideration while is he in judicial custody? I urged the central committee not to discuss his case further and let’s hope he will be free,” said Shrestha.

Party’s head of publicity division, Bishawkarma said that when a member of a family is in trouble, it is natural that the guardian should come to his defence. “At a time when a member of the family lands in trouble, do we rescue him or should we go to the police and send him to jail,” asked Bishawkarma.

A group of Congress leaders had met with Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shreshta after the arrest of Khand, a central working committee member. They thanked him for taking a resolute position on corruption and exposing the fake Bhutanese refugee scam. Some party leaders including general secretaries Thapa, Sharma, and others have demanded Khand’s suspension as a central member.

Basnet also criticised some party members for speaking against Khand. “Now Home Minister Narayan Kaji Shrestha is being dragged into the gold smuggling case,” said Basent. “Let’s demand his resignation. Are we ready for that?”

Another central member Sunil Sharma also joined the chorus of defending Khand. Shankar Bhandari expressed his differences over the constitution of Nepal. Bhandari is in favour of reinstating the Hindu statehood in Nepal. The present constitution has declared Nepal as a secular nation. He also proposed at the meeting seeking an alternative to federalism.

Coming down heavily on the paper presented by the general secretaries, Arzu Rana Deuba said that it read like a wishlist of an NGO.

The spouse of party president Deuba also called for unity in the party. “Any challenge can be dealt with if we stand together,” she said.

Former foreign minister Narayan Khadka said that the issue of leadership handover to the new generation was raised. “Some of the office bearers are raising the issue of generation gap and handing over party reins to younger leaders.”