At a time when the dispute in the ruling Nepal Communist Party has reached its peak leaving the Party Standing Committee and Central Committee to decide the fate of the party, party spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha has been dragged into controversy for his alleged involvement in a financial case related to late Kaman Singh Lama and Shrestha’s former aide Susan Karmacharya.
A long status by late Lama just before his death from COVID-19 a few days ago led the controversy and the leaders loyal to Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has been using the status to criticise spokesperson Shrestha, who has been a critic of Oli.
According to Lama, Shrestha took his 25 million rupees and had illicit relations with his wife Indra Maya, also an NCP leader. The case is related to hydropower, Yambaling, registered by late Lama. Now Deputy Prime Minister Ishwar Pokhrel and NCP leader Gokul Baskota are raising the issue asking Shrestha to step down from the responsibility of party spokesperson. But Shrestha, as well as Indra Maya, have been refuting the allegation.
Party chairman Pushpa Kamala Dahal defended Shrestha during the party Standing Committee meeting on Sunday. Interestingly, Lama and Indra Maya had been close to Shrestha since long-serving in the same party. Lama had become an ambassador to Korea because of Shrestha. But now Lama had accused Shrestha of spoiling his financial as well as family life. However, Lama had two wives.
The case looks like a replica of the case of Krishna Bahadur Mahara who quit the post on a similar allegation.
However, the issue of Shrestha is likely to provide relief to Prime Minister Oli for a short time as he could raise the issue in the party’s Standing and Central Committee meetings.
The Standing Committee meeting of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Sunday concluded after passing a condolence motion on the demise of NCP’s central member and former parliamentarian Lama.
The brief meeting held at the Prime Minister’s Official Residence in Baluwatar also decided to hold the next Standing Committee meeting on Wednesday, December 16.
Ending speculations that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli would not attend the meeting, he and Dahal both attended the meeting. But the meeting did not deal with the dispute and Wednesday’s meeting was expected to centre on the dispute.
Meanwhile, sending former chief of the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority Deep Basnyat sent to judicial custody on Sunday over the case of Baluwatar land is being interpreted as a ploy to frighten senior leader Madhav Kumar Nepal, who was heading the government when the decision was taken because PM Oli has been unable to convince Nepal. Now Oli and his close leaders have been working hard to woo Dahal instead of Nepal.
But things suggest that PM Oli has to quit one of the posts to safeguard unity in the party, and he is probably quitting the post of party chair paving Nepal to enjoy the top party post. Otherwise, maintaining unity in the party looks impossible. Reproduced from People`s Review
