Former RPP chairman Kamal Thapa has quit the party.
Issuing a statement on Tuesday Thapa, who lost the election for the party chair to Rajendra Lingden in the recent general convention, has said he has been compelled to take what he calls the sad decision despite his strong desire to be happy and spend his remaining active political life in RPP as his grievances have not been heard.
"I have decided to separate from RPP with a very heavy heart and feeling of pain," starts his short statement. He has claimed that he has no animus toward anyone inside RPP.
Thapa had warned of starting a 'new journey' if his three demands are not met immediately after holding a gathering of those close to him at Sukedhara on Monday. "I do not want to take the trouble of creating a new journey. But the new journey will start if you compel me. I do not insist to anyone to support me in that journey. Do decide of your own volition, decide asking your conscience. We have reached the final hour."
Thapa had pointed that he raised three issues including ideological, practical and organizational ones and added that the party leadership should resolve that after holding discussion. "We have to go for the alternative in compulsion if the three issues we have raised are not discussed and resolved before the government announces local election."
He had clarified that he will remain in RPP and will work for expansion of organization across the country if the party leadership held discussion on the issues he has raised and finds a solution. He had pointed that he drew the attention of Lingden writing a letter first on December 13 and then on January 30 but to no avail.
The central committee has been expanded in the intervening period but the issues I raised have not been discussed, he had griped. He had claimed the letter he sent on December 13 was thrown in a dustbin and added that the other letter he sent on January 30 expressing displeasure at the arbitrary manner in which the party is being led has also been ignored.
"I met with Rajendra Lingden two days ago, and talked. I told him 'The issues I have raised is not about legitimacy of you being party chairman. You are elected chairman and you will lead the party for five years'. He even became emotional. He said his love and respect toward me will rise further," Thapa had stated.
He had revealed that Lingden called him even on Sunday. "Someone apparently told him that I am opening a new party. He phoned me even yesterday," he stated. "I said 'I will not take the trouble but will think about alternative if compelled.'"
Thapa had accused former king Gyanendra of getting him defeated to Lingden in the general convention after his unexpected loss. He even issued a statement on December 7 and accused Gyanendra of trying to finish him politically to turn the party into a band of lackeys and warned that Gyanendra may continue such intervention even in other parties if the monarchy were revived.
He had claimed that the intervention of Nirmal Niwas, (Gyanendra's residence) in the party's general convention to get Rajendra Lingden elected party chair instead of him is not the first one and accused it of playing a role in splitting the party four years back.
"This is not the first instance of intervention by Nirmal Niwas. It is well known that Nirmal Niwas has played a role in splitting the party in 2017, and been repeatedly involved in recent times in character assassination of the leadership by forming a band of lackeys and spreading falsehoods about RPP," Thapa had stated.
"The fact that efforts have been made to finish me politically with the malicious intention of turning RPP into a band of lackeys instead of making it a powerful political party that can bring around political, economic and social transformation is clear. We will not allow the plan of Nirmal Niwas to make RPP a band of lackeys."
He had added that there will now be debate in RPP about monarchy and the plan of Nirmal Niwas to run the party through a remote control.
He had taken to Twitter immediately after losing to Lingden on December 5 to condemn what he called naked intervention of the Nirmal Niwas in the general convention. "I have been relieved and liberated. I have been rewarded today for walking around wearing a shroud on the head (taking mortal risks) carrying the institution of monarchy since 2006 when the whole country turned republican," Thapa tweeted tagging a handle of Gyanendra that has not been officially verified. "May the king be blessed for the endeavor to politically finish the main propagator of that agenda."
He then claimed in the statement two days later that his reaction was not made in the heat of the moment after his loss. "I humbly request to not take this expression as my rage after losing election. Victory or loss does not have any meaning for me as I am a sportsperson. The culture of happily accepting defeat and remain ready again for another competition is in my blood."
He had elaborated that the party and he believe that the institution of monarchy should remain as a symbol of national unity above petty politics considering geopolitics, and religious, social and cultural context, and claimed that Gyanendra can continue his blatant intervention seen now in a party of monarchists even in other parties and national politics.
"If the king blatantly and dirtily intervenes in a party with 100 percent monarchists, this has finished moral ground for us to rule out the king's intervention even in other parties and national politics if monarchy is reinstated tomorrow. How can we say that the king will not intervene in democracy and democratic institutions as in the past?"
