Deuba Holds Phone Talks Amid Growing Demand for Congress Leadership Change

The Nepali Congress is witnessing a surge in demand for a special convention as internal debates on leadership change intensify. Party leaders are preparing to call a convention to elect new leadership, with discussions unfolding across various levels.

Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, who was injured during the Jan-G movement, is communicating with party leaders via phone rather than in-person meetings.

A central committee meeting has been scheduled for October 12, 2025 (26 Ashwin). Before this, convention representatives are preparing to submit signatures to call a special convention.

General Secretary Bishwprakash Sharma urged representatives via a video message on social media to submit their signatures by October 10, 2025 (24 Ashwin). “If you wish to sign, please do so by the 24th,” Sharma stated, signaling that the party is likely heading toward a special convention soon. Sharma believes that the convention will strengthen the party further.

Following the Jan-G movement, Deuba convened the central committee meeting, prompting non-establishment factions to begin signature collection for a special convention.

Leaders have confirmed that the central committee meeting will formally advance the leadership change discussion. A faction within the Congress plans to submit signatures as early as October 11, 2025 (25 Ashwin).

Meanwhile, General Secretaries Gagan Thapa and Bishwprakash Sharma, along with leader Dr. Shekhar Koirala, are lobbying separately, calling for Deuba to step down.

The signature campaign for the special convention is being led by Gururaj Ghimire, who initiated the effort from the first week of Ashwin. General Secretary Thapa has also joined the campaign. Central member Ajay Shivakoti, close to Thapa, stated that the central committee meeting will discuss the convention. “Given the current political climate, discussions on leadership restructuring and the convention are inevitable,” Shivakoti said.

Ahead of the central committee meeting, convention representatives are collecting signatures to request leadership change even before party restructuring discussions.

Thapa and Sharma have been engaged in discussions across different levels of the party to restructure leadership. Thapa has openly stated that he is willing to resign from his general secretary position if necessary to facilitate party reformation.

“Continuing as we are will not rebuild the party. We must be ready to resign and take risks for fundamental reforms. I am willing to step down as General Secretary to start this discussion. Let’s accept our mistakes, undertake self-review, re-evaluation, and reaffirm our commitment to party transformation,” Thapa said.

On October 6, 2025 (21 Ashwin), Koirala and Thapa, along with 109 convention representatives, issued a joint statement initiating the signature campaign. Currently, the Congress has 4,743 convention representatives.

According to party regulations, 40% of convention representatives’ signatures are required to call a special convention, which is the basis for the ongoing signature drive.

Central committee member Devaraj Chalise stated that if the committee does not decide to call a convention on October 12, signatures will be submitted. “We first want the process to be lawful. If not, we will exercise the authority given by the party statute,” Chalise added.

If the central committee approves or 40% of representatives submit signatures, the process to call a special convention can begin. While Deuba has a clear majority in the central committee, recent political developments indicate that factions outside the establishment are gaining strength.

Some senior Congress leaders, including Krishna Sitoula, Prakashman Singh, Bimalendra Nidhi, and Gopalman Shrestha, remain uncertain about whether the party will hold a special or regular convention and have not publicly shared a clear stance.