Kathmandu, March 16
An influential leader in the main opposition Nepali Congress party, Krishna Prasad Sitaula, hosted a gathering of leaders and cadres close to him in Kathmandu on Monday.
Apparently, Sitaula hosted the meeting, at a time when his party has decided to postpone all mass events citing coronavirus fears, in his bid to show that he leads a different school of thought in the party.
Just a few days ago, the party’s president Sher Bahadur Deuba had appointed Shiva Prasad Humagain, a leader close to Sitaula, as the chief of the party’s labour and trade union department, whereas Gagan Thapa and Pradip Paudel had joined a meeting of the faction led by Ram Chandra Paudel. The two incidents had forced the party insiders to speculate that the Sitaula camp was gradually dissolving. Consequently, he was under pressure to show his existence.
Gagan Thapa and Pradip Paudel attended the gathering today and addressed the cadres, stressing they belonged to the different group.
