On Saturday, the general convention held in Kathmandu elected Samikchya Baskota Chairperson of the party unanimously, along with Ranju Darshana as its General Secretary. Prakash Chandra Pariyar, Milan Pandey and Bimala Adhikari are vice-chairs of the party.
But for others seeking to be part of the party’s apex body, it may not be a cakewalk. In all likelihood, those aspiring for 61 central committee member positions in the party will have to contest elections to land these berths. For bringing the party back from the brink, a number of members, who had ditched the party on different grounds, returned to the party fold. This move also facilitated the general convention. Like in the fashion of the Aam Aadmi Party in India, Bibeksheel Sajha was expected to make its presence felt in Nepal. But that did not happen as the party landed in splitsville more than once due to conflicts in its rank and file. The party founded on July 26, 2017 after the merger of Sajha Party and Bibeksheel Party split on January 11, 2019, only to merge again on December 09, 2020 under the joint leadership of Rabindra Mishra and Ujwal Bahadur Thapa. The lessons from the past are not lost on the party, that is what the new leadership says. Talking to Annapurna Express about the challenges and plans to tackle them, Baskota and Darshana shared that leading the party was not an easy task, but they were ready to take up the challenge. “We have come to this point after multiple splits and reunions. Crevices have formed at all three levels of the party structure. We need to repair damaged structures,” said Ranju Darshana, general secretary of the party. “We are aware of past debacles. We must make the party stronger if we are to bring about desired changes in the country. We plan to form teams in provinces, districts, wards and at local levels. We will be working to promote leadership at every level,” added Darshana. The importance of inter-party dialogue is not lost on the new leadership. “Bibeksheel Sajha Party is committed to starting dialogues with different parties,” Darshana said. She also stressed the need to make party members financially independent by promoting entrepreneurship. The new leaders are aware of the hard work required to make the party stronger by winning hearts and minds of the members and the public at large. “We are aware that members may have some ideological differences. But we need to sort out these differences rather than letting them destroy the party. We have learned this lesson from the past,” said Baskota. The party aims to regain its strength (lost after the split) with leaders planning to visit villages, wards and local areas for the same. What does the party plan to do next? “We will conduct provincial and district conventions within a year for the leadership,” said Baskota. The party also aims to hold dialogues, discussions and share forums with the public, expand its organizational base, work against corruption and prepare for the elections.
