Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli is no longer the leader of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), former Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal told The Hindu. The party, however, had not yet expelled him, he said. He accused Mr. Oli of running “basic policy affairs” of the government without consulting the party.
“The Central Committee of the Nepal Communist Party has expelled Mr. Oli from the position of the co-chair of the party. Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ and myself are the new co-chairs of the party. We will share responsibilities together and will give the party a democratic and transparent leadership. However, we have not expelled Prime Minister Oli from the party,” said Mr. Nepal over phone from Kathmandu.
Mr. Nepal, jointly with Mr. Prachanda, had spearheaded the challenge to Mr. Oli after accusing him of making “major political appointments” without consulting the party’s top organs. “He repeatedly violated the founding agreement of the party. We did not seek to interfere in bureaucratic appointments but he had to consult us in basic policy affairs and before making major political appointments, which he did not.”
The challenge from the Prachanda-Nepal combine prompted Mr. Oli to recommend dissolution of the Lower House of Parliament on December 20.
‘He has gone too far’
“Oli has gone too far. He sensed that his opponents are in the majority both in the Standing Committee and Central Committee of the party,” said Mr. Nepal. He also accused Mr. Oli of trying to create a “so-called Central Committee” with his supporters.
Mr. Nepal said he held discussions with the visiting Chinese delegation, which concluded its visit on Wednesday, but maintained that he didn’t favour external interference in the domestic affairs of the country.
“We are not guided by others and we do not expect any undue advice from friends. We tried for months and years to change Mr. Oli’s authoritarian tendencies. If anyone has any medicine for authoritarian tendencies, we suggest they send that to Mr. Oli,” Mr. Nepal said.
He maintained that the NCP ultimately would split if Mr. Oli did not reverse his decision to dissolve Parliament. “We can sit together again if Mr. Oli pledges that he will respect democratic norms and will not neglect the sentiment of the majority in the party,” he added.