Nepali Congress Factional Dispute Deepens as Leaders Removed from Party Website

The Sher Bahadur Deuba–led faction of the Nepali Congress has removed the names and photos of Gagan Thapa, Bishwa Prakash Sharma, and Farumullah Mansoor from the party’s official website. This has made the internal dispute within the party more serious.

Before the Special General Convention, Thapa and Sharma were serving as General Secretaries, while Mansoor was a Joint General Secretary. Their profiles are no longer seen on the website, which is still controlled by the Deuba faction.

However, the Nepali Congress held a Special General Convention from January 11 to 14. The convention elected a new Central Working Committee under the leadership of Gagan Thapa. A majority of party delegates attended the convention, and it claimed to have completed both leadership selection and policy decisions.

The Deuba-led group did not take part in this convention. It continues to claim that it is the real and official Nepali Congress.

The removal of these leaders from the party’s website is being viewed as part of a bigger fight between the two groups over control of the party and legal recognition.

Now, since both sides are claiming legitimacy, the issue is expected to be decided by the Election Commission and possibly the courts.