81 contesting for 43 UML CC membership

February 5, 2003
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February 05, 2003

JANAKPURDHAM, Election for the new central committee of the Nepal Communist Party (Unified Marxist-Leninist) started late evening today. The 7th general convention of the party that began Saturday will formally conclude after the election.

The general convention will elect 43 full members and 12 alternate central committee members. There are 107 candidates – 81 for full and 26 for alternate membership – in the fray.

All but three members of the erstwhile central committee are contesting the election. The newly elected central committee will elect a new general secretary, the most powerful position of the party.

There are 1,007 voters, and each of them will have to tick 55 names on the ballot paper.

An election committee comprising Dr. Mangal Siddhi Manandhar as coordinator and Amar Giri, Dr. Upendra Koirala, Bindra Pandey, Govinda Bandhi, Dharmanath Shah, Sanuraja Pokharel, Parshuram Gurung and Hari Upreti as members was formed to conduct the election, Iswor Pokharel, publicity coordinator told the press. All the candidates were busy campaigning until the last minute.

The election process started after the general convention had approved the reports of the party’s Central Advisory Committee, Audit Committee, and Disciplinary Committee.

Fixed criteria were announced for candidates seeking election to the central committee. Accordingly, a central committee candidate must have served as a party activist for at least 15 years or for five years as the secretary of the district committee or for three years as secretary of the zonal committee.

Members of the dissolved central committee are competing with the new candidates meeting the above criteria for a berth in the central committee. If outgoing general secretary of the party Madhav Kumar Nepal and all members of the standing committee fielded their candidacies, member of the erstwhile central committee Agham Bantawa and member of the Advisory Committee Kamal Koirala did not contest.

The number of women seeking election to the central committee is up this time. Thirteen women, including four women members in the dissolved central committee, have fielded their candidacy.

Voting time was fixed till ten in the evening. Vote counting was scheduled to begin late at night, and the results are due early Thursday morning.

Earlier today, Bharat Mohan Adhikary, on behalf of the presidential council, had proposed changing the number of central committee members. The general convention had then decided to reduce the number of central committee members from 56 to 55.

But the convention failed to elect the leadership for the party’s political, organisational and statute amendment committees, so they wanted an election to decide.

Meanwhile, RSS adds that leaders of CPN-UML K.P.Sharma Oli and Bamdev Gautam have said they have contributed to make the Seventh National General Convention a general convention of sentimental unity.

Talking to reporters here today, they said they withdrew their proposals for the unity in party, realising the national urgency of unity with other parties.

The proposals had to be withdrawn as their democratic ideas had to be discussed adequately among workers and people they said, adding it has inspired all to move ahead in the direction of democratisation of the party.

No one has lost but every one has won in the general convention, Oli said, adding his ideas has given rise to democratic exercise in the party and a ideological and political training was given to workers.

Both of them have stood for the election of the central committee, today.