Bhattarai refuses to budge; party calls July 19 plenum Dahal says people want to see him and his deputy go hand-in-hand

KATHMANDU, JUL 01 -
As UCPN (Maoist) leader Baburam Bhattarai refused to revise his decision to step down as the party’s vice-chairman, the party on Sunday decided to call an extended plenum for July 19 to seek a solution to the new crisis.

A new crisis stared at the party after Bhattarai on Saturday said he would give up the vice-chairman’s post.

Despite the party holding several meetings on Sunday in an effort to retain Bhattarai, the former prime minister refused to budge an inch.

The plenum to be attended by 500 party members, including Central Committee members, advisors, district chiefs and chiefs of the party’s sister wings, will settle the row over appointments in various party committees. This very row had led to Bhattarai deciding to leave the vice-chairman’s post.

According to leaders, the plenum has a mandate to elect the new leadership.

“The plenum will form the party’s committees through voting as the number of leaders aspiring to become CC members is high,” party spokesperson Agni Prasad Sapkota said.

“The history, people and the proletariat class want to see Prachanda and Bhattarai go hand-in-hand. As such, the party has decided to call the extended meeting for the same,”party Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal told a meeting of the 98-member CC on Sunday.

Indicating that he would not take back his decision, Bhattarai removed his position as the party’s vice-chairman from his Twitter account and his personal website on Sunday afternoon.

In the CC meeting on Thursday, top leaders presented a proposal on the appointments in the different committees, which was protested by most of the leaders. They accused Bhattarai of ‘promoting his near and dear ones,’ prompting the vice-chairman to step down. The party held its sixth extended plenum in November 2010 after ideological differences between Dahal, Mohan Baidya and Baburam Bhattarai came to the fore. Last year, the party held the seventh plenum to reiterate its line of peace and constitution.

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