One down, two to go

Deuba’s decision to relinquish party chairmanship will put moral pressure on Oli and Dahal.

One of the central demands of the Gen Z protests—the removal of the top leaders of the three major parties—is being realised, albeit slowly. The Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML—the two largest political parties in the recently dissolved House of Representatives—are both holding their central committee meetings. These meetings are being closely watched, as they come in the wake of the Gen Z uprising that upended Nepal’s political landscape overnight. However, the atmosphere of the two meetings are markedly different. At the Congress headquarters in Sanepa, there is a whiff of change. The Nepali Congress Central Working Committee meeting is being chaired by the newly appointed Acting Party President, Purna Bahadur Khadka. This follows Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba’s decision to step aside from the party’s executive role.