Nepali Congress (NC) is set to postpone its general convention once again.
The party, that had first scheduled to hold the 14th general convention from February 19-22, 2021, has postponed it four times.
The party is now doing homework to postpone it for the fifth time on the pretext of dispute about active membership and COVID-19 pandemic as it looks unlikely to hold it from from November 25-29 as per the last deferral.
The party that had initiated process for the 14th general convention almost two years back has been unable to resolve the dispute about active membership due to delay in integration of those joining the party quitting other parties.
The dispute about active membership has yet to be resolved in Rasuwa and Rautahat districts while ward convention is uncertain in more districts despite resolving the dispute about active membership.
The party has completed ward convention in 64 out of 77 districts but convention of rural/municipality has yet to be completed in many of those districts. It had planned to complete even district convention in 21 mountainous districts before the Dashain festival but has completed that only in 14 districts.
NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba recently held discussion with central member Ramesh Lekhak and others to resolve the dispute about active membership but it is already too late to hold the general convention in November.
"The dispute about active membership will be resolved in a few days. Ward convention in the remaining 13 districts will be held immediately after Chhath festival. But there will not be sufficient time to start the general convention from November 25. It will have to be deferred to mid-January 2022 or even beyond," a leader close to Deuba elaborated.
The leader confided that Deuba will soon hold meeting of office-bearers and central committee meeting to announce the new date for general convention.
NC President Sher Bahadur Deuba, whose four-year term expired in March 2020, had given himself a one-year term extension which meant his term expired on March 3, 2021. The party had also decided to hold the next general convention from February 19-22, 2021. But it could not be held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
NC delayed the general convention taking help from the Constitution which has a provision of a six-month extension for parties in special circumstances. "Provided that in case election of the office bearers could not be held within five years due to situation arising out of special circumstance, there shall be no hindrance to make provision in the statute of a political party to hold such election within a period of six months," states the provision in Article 269(4b) of the Constitution related to political parties.
But even that six-month extension has expired now.
