KATHMANDU, April 26: While leaders of the Nepali Congress (NC) are coming down heavily on the party leadership for the defeat in the recent parliamentary, provincial and local polls, those close to the party president, Sher Bahadur Deuba, have defended the leadership. 

Speaking at the ongoing NC Central Working Committee meeting on Wednesday, leaders close to the party president claimed that the entire party leadership should take responsibility for the defeat. 

Most of the leaders including Bimalendra Nidhi, Prakash Saran Mahat, Shankar Bhandari, Mohan Bahadur Basnet and Biswa Prakash Sharma defended the party leadership. Mahesh Acharya alone criticized the leadership Wednesday, said party leaders. 

The leaders have claimed that the responsibility for the party's poor performance in the polls should be taken by all party leaders at the center and the local levels. 

Party Spokesperson Biswa Prakash Sharma pointed out six internal reasons for the party's defeat in the polls. He has mentioned lack of ownership by the party leadership, the eroding image of the party, deviation from the party agenda, lack of publicity, lack of vision and the traditional structure of the party 

He has also played the trend of criticizing the party chief, recalling past criticisms of Grija Prasad Koirala and Krishna Prasad Bhattarai. “We need to find a common approach for the party's reconstruction through the holding of a Mahasamiti meeting and by accepting the suggestions made and proposals presented inside and outside the Central Committee,” said Sharma at the meeting. 

Nidhi said that the party failed to counter what he described as the cosmetic nationalistic agenda of the left parties. Leaders close to Deuba also accused senior leader Ram Chandra Paudel of not cooperating with the party president for the greater good  of the party. 

 
• those
 
• close
 
• deuba
 
• defend
 
• leadership
 
• nc