With the general convention of the CPN (Unified Socialist) approaching closer, top leaders of the party have intensified their preparations and lobbying for the top posts.

As they expedite their lobbying through various informal channels, the party leaders in their formal speeches are emphasising the need of electing the leadership through a consensus.

Senior leader Jhalanath Khanal did the same on Monday.

A group of CPN-UML leaders led by Madhav Kumar Nepal, the party’s former chief, split the country’s largest communist party to form the CPN (Unified Socialist) in August 2021. They split the party protesting against UML chair KP Sharma Oli’s decision to dissolve the House of Representatives twice.

Following a poor performance in the 2022 elections, where it failed even to secure the status of the national party, the CPN (Unified Socialist) is now struggling to retain party members. Despite holding important portfolios in the federal and provincial governments, the party leaders are finding it difficult even to stop its members from rejoining their old party, the UML, let alone attracting new members.

Amid the diminishing influence, the party is gearing up for the general convention scheduled for June 30 to July 4 in Kathmandu.

If the claims recently made by the leaders are anything to go by, the two former prime ministers—Nepal and Khanal—will face each other for the position of party chief during the general convention. Both of the leaders also led the CPN-UML in the past.

Khanal on Monday emphasised the need of electing the party leadership through a consensus.

While addressing the event to launch ‘Mahila Sankalpa-2’, which is the mouthpiece of the party’s women’s wing, All Nepal Women’s Association, Khanal stressed the need for a consensual election of the leaders. However, a certain criteria of leadership should be followed, Khanal said.

“To strengthen the leadership within the party, we must select the leaders of the party through a consensus,” Khanal said during the programme. “Since our party was formed on the basis of an ideological ground, political direction, and certain policies and principles, we all should strive to maintain these values while selecting the leadership as well.”

A party insider claimed that Khanal staked his claim for the top position as his political line was adopted in the political document to be presented in the general convention. Party general secretary Ghanashyam Bhusal prepared the political document to be presented in the general convention of the party. While in the UML, party chair Nepal embraced Madan Bhandari’s People’s Multi-party Democracy unconditionally for many years while Khanal and Bhusal viewed it critically. According to party leaders, Khanal and Bhusal have succeeded in including their ideas in the Unified Socialist’s official line.

“In politics, the leaders whose policies prevail as the party’s official line should get the opportunity to lead the party,” a party leader told the Post on the condition of anonymity. “Though the political document of the party is guided by the thoughts of general secretary Bhusal, Khanal also owns it, so he is claiming the leadership.”

This does not mean that party chair Nepal has not owned the political document passed by the party's central committee, but the document is closer to the political line advocated by Bhusal and Khanal for a long time, said a party insider.

Party chair Nepal, while addressing the same programme on Monday, also said that there are no differences among the leaders in terms of the party’s ideological line. “The preparation of the political, organisational and other documents to be presented in the upcoming congress is a collective effort of party leaders and cadres,” Nepal said.

In addition to Nepal and Khanal, the party's general secretary Bhusal is also considering contesting for the party chair in the upcoming congress, though he has not publicly announced it yet.

“Matters related to the aspiration of the leaders for the post of office bearers will be clear only after the selection of convention representatives,” Jeevan Ram Shrestha, the secretary of the party, told the Post. “Before the selection of the representatives, all things that have come from the media are mere speculation.”

The party has decided to select general convention representatives from around the country on Wednesday. Shrestha said that the selection of representatives will make things clearer about the aspirants’ claims.

Khanal has already opened his contact office at Baneshwar with a plan to manage his team’s activities during the general convention.

Though Khanal has opened his contact office, he may or may not contest for the vital post, says another leader of the party who does not want to disclose his identity. The leader said that it might be under his publicity strategy. “If the political scenario is not in his favour, Khanal might back Bhusal for the leadership of the party to challenge Nepal,” the leader claimed. “On the other hand, Nepal, the present chair of the party, might also back Bhusal if he senses a tough challenge from Khanal.”

Bhusal has remained tightlipped about his candidacy in view of the situation, a leader close to Bhusal said. “If the two top leaders decide to face each other, Bhusal might settle with his current position of general secretary.”

The party’s deputy general secretaries, Jagan Nath Khatiwada and Parkash Jwala, have already announced their bid for the post of general secretary.

The party will most likely select the leadership through consensus, says another leader. Meanwhile, there are voices in favour of continuing present chair Nepal in the position saying that he has put utmost efforts to establish the party after the split and sustain it amid a challenging situation. But there are also leaders who want Khanal’s leadership.

“One of the two leaders will possibly lead the party,” Unified Socialist leader Som Prasad Pandey, who is close to Nepal, told the Post. “Though Bhusal’s name is also in the discussion for the post of chair, he is most likely to continue as the general secretary.”

Meanwhile, former CPN-UML vice-chair Bhim Rawal, who has remained inactive in the UML after the party's convention held in November 2021 in Chitwan, is reportedly considering joining the Unified Socialist from the upcoming congress. In 2021, Rawal challenged Oli for the position of party chair despite Oli’s request not to do so. Since then, Rawal has been given no role in the UML.

“Our party is in talks with Bhim Rawal to bring him to the party. We have already held two rounds of negotiation with him,” Shrestha, the secretary, told the Post. “If everything goes as planned, Rawal will join our party with a respectable position.”

The Post’s attempts to contact Rawal to confirm Shrestha’s claim were unsuccessful.