Congress to leave electoral alliance at local discretion

KATHMANDU: MARCH. 20 – As local level elections loom and coalition partners are pressing for an early decision on forging an electoral alliance, Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba’s Nepali Congress party has yet to take an official decision.

Leaders of Congress are sharply divided over whether the party should fight the upcoming elections alone or in partnership with the coalition partners. Even if the party chooses to contest the May 13 polls in an alliance, its local committees could take their independent decisions as the party authorises them to decide the candidates. And while the party’s local committees select the candidates, the party’s central decision in favour of alliances may not prevail, Congress leaders say.

Some Congress members believe that decisions on seat-sharing in the local federal units should be handed over to the party committees formed in all 165 electoral constituencies, 77 district committees and seven provinces. Another proposal is that such seat arrangements should be decided from the centre in agreement with other ruling partners.

The Nepali Congress, the leading partner in the alliance, has called a meeting of its Central Working Committee on March 25. The meeting is expected to find a way out of the present state of confusion.

There already are statements from leaders of the coalition about the prospect of an electoral alliance. Irked by some Congress leaders’ anti-alliance rhetoric, some Maoist Centre leaders have told their cadres that the party should be ready to fight the elections alone—whether or not there are electoral alliances with other parties.

Some Congress leaders have made strong statements against the idea of electoral alliances. One such leader is Nepali Congress, Vice-president Dhanraj Gurung.

Representing the voice inside the party that seat-sharing arrangements should not be made by the centre, Gurung said poll alliance at the local level should be decided by the party’s local committees.

As per the Congress party charter, there should be four layers of election boards—at the centre, provinces, districts and electoral constituencies—for fielding the party’s electoral candidates.

The central parliamentary board selects the party’s candidates in the federal and provincial parliaments and the mayor and deputy mayor of the metropolitan cities. The provincial parliamentary board is authorised to select the candidates for mayor and deputy mayor of sub-metropolitan cities and municipalities. The district parliamentary board selects the candidates in rural municipalities and the party committees in 165 electoral constituencies select ward-level candidates in all layers of local units.

The upcoming meeting of the party’s Central Working Committee is expected to take a call on the formation of such boards. There is general understanding that decisions on seat-sharing or arrangements among the ruling partners should be delegated to the provincial, district and electoral constituency committees of the party, Gurung told the Post.

Any imposition from the centre will be refused by the local and district level leaders, said Bishwa Prakash Sharma, a Congress general secretary. “Our position is clear that relevant local bodies should be authorised to take a call on forging electoral alliances.”

Other ruling partners, however, are awaiting an official decision of the Congress on the electoral alliance. Ruling party leaders blame the absence of a concrete decision on local electoral alliances among the coalition partners on the different views, opinions and positions of individual politicians.

Some Congress leaders are against forging alliances in the local elections, which has complicated matters, said Beduram Bhusal, general secretary of the CPN (Unified Socialist).

“We are awaiting a decision from the Nepali Congress since views inside the party are divided,” said Bhusal, adding that his party was prepared even for a solo contest. “We have already decided to be open: we will contest alone but if the ruling parties forge an alliance, we are ready for that too.”

Almost all ruling party leaders agree that it is difficult to reach a deal or impose their decisions for forging poll alliances at the local level. And none of them seems to be in a hurry to forge poll alliances because individual political parties are awaiting reports from the grassroots to gauge their strengths at a particular local constituency.

Sources said some security agencies including the National Investigation Department are also taking stock of the situation on the ground, which will be reported to the government.

Some leaders say the Maoist Centre is employing a pressure tactic on the Nepali Congress as it wants to become the second party after the Congress at the local elections through collaboration. But it is difficult due to the main opposition, CPN–UML, a central member of the Congress said.

Another Maoist worry could have stemmed from the statements by some UML leaders that Nepal is heading towards a two-party system—one led by Congress and the other by UML.

Some UML leaders including Chairman KP Sharma Oli and General Secretary Shankar Pokhrel have spoken publicly that Nepal is heading for the adoption of a two-party system. Maoist Chairman Dahal has already countered their statements, refuting them as part of “national and international conspiracies”.

“Since we are awaiting ground reports, we have not reached any conclusion yet,” senior Maoist leader Haribol Gajurel said.

“We are of the view that any decision taken from the centre on the poll alliance at the local level may not work.

“If we impose a decision from the centre, cadres may be irked, that might be counterproductive too. If we impose such central decisions about seat-sharing on the basis of percentage or numbers, that will ultimately divide our votes and it could have a spillover effect,” Gajurel said.

He added that poll alliance is possible in some particular local units but any decision has yet to be taken.

-Kathmandu Post