Party Youth Wings Shake Under Factional Violence

Kathmandu, May 25 – In the previous year, the Nepali Congress established three distinct panels aimed at assisting the party’s allied organizations with their respective ad hoc committees in holding general conventions as per the set deadlines.

Following the resolution adopted by the party’s Central Working Committee on August 7 of last year, Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba instructed the committees to make sure that the regular meetings of the Nepal Women’s Association, Nepal Tarun Dal, and Nepal Students’ Union conclude by the end of mid-April.

Despite both sister organizations not having commenced their general convention-related tasks, the party’s youth branch, Tarun Dal, initiated its district-level conference in Lamjung but at a delayed schedule. Nevertheless, internal conflicts have stalled preparations for the fifth general convention.

On May 17, the organization’s district conference escalated into violence because of a power struggle between the two provincial leaders: Tekraj Gurung, who holds dual roles as the party’s district head and the province’s Minister for Economic Affairs, and Bhesh Bahadur Paudel, a former minister from Gandaki Province.

A senior official from Tarun Dal stated that following the Paudel group’s act of throwing chairs inside the convention hall as an retaliatory move, the Gurung faction responded by assaulting them with khukuris.

The event resulted in injuries for four people—Khusijung Gurung, Sudip Adhikari, Santosh Basnet, and Shankar Sapkota.

Among those individuals, Khusijung and Sudip were sent to Chitwan for additional care. It is reported that the incident occurred after members of an opposing group staged a demonstration, claiming they had been excluded from involvement in the convention via the designated selection procedures.

As reported by witnesses, the established group turned to using knives following an assault from the opposing side, who had been shouting protests against their exclusion from the entirety of the convention proceedings.

A central committee member from Tarun Dal stated, ‘Prior to the convention, we assessed the potential for electing the leadership unanimously.’ However, he added, ‘On the day of the convention, opposing groups voiced their complaints, leading to heated altercations.’

The member added, “Later we found out that the conflict between the two groups had been brewing for quite a while. The event during the district convention served as the catalyst.”

On May 19, a formal complaint was filed regarding the violence that occurred at the district convention in Lamjung involving certain individuals. The following day, the district police issued an arrest warrant for those implicated in the event.

The lawsuit alleges that four people were involved in an attempt to commit murder. Despite initial reluctance from law enforcement to file the complaint, it has now been formally registered.

The Lamjung Police Chief Deputy Superintendent Resham Bohara verified the update. “Although we have filed the report, no arrests have been made so far,” Bohara stated. “Investigative efforts are currently ongoing. With the filing of this complaint, the matter will now progress through the legal system.”

The police from Lamjung stated that a complaint was lodged on behalf of the victims, charging Kiran Gurung and Dhan Bahadur Tamang from Madhya Nepal Municipality, Ganesh Gurung from Rainas Municipality, and Bhupesh Gurung from Marsyangdi Rural Municipality with attempting to commit murder.

Such an event is not exclusive to the Tarun Dal. A comparable occurrence took place about two weeks prior within a sister organization of the CPN-UML, the second-biggest party in Parliament, which heads the administration.

In Parbat District, conflict erupted between two factions of the Unified Marxist-Leninist (UML) party due to disagreements stemming from the election of the district’s National Youth Federation leadership on May 7. This contention escalated into violence, leaving Gandaki Province Legislative Assembly member and young leader Arjun Paudel with injuries to his head.

These examples represent only a couple of instances. Other occurrences involve the youth wings of political organizations engaging in acts of violence under different pretenses from time to time.

Why do members of political parties’ young branches frequently turn to violence when they disagree with opposing factions?

When the interests of the leaders overshadow those of the political parties, such issues become unavoidable, stated Udhaya Shamsher Rana, who previously chaired Tarun Dal and currently serves as a congressman for Congress.

Jitjung Basnet, who leads the ad hoc committee set up by the party to arrange the general convention of Tarun Dal, mentioned that a disagreement among the leadership caused issues in Lamjung.

Basnet stated that the planned schedule for the district convention was disrupted because of a disagreement among the local leaders. He added that they aim to resolve this issue promptly so they can set a new date for the event.

Basnet mentioned that both groups have indicated they will soon come to an agreement to organize the convention.

Sarin Ghimire, who serves on the central committee of Tarun Dal, stated that the conflicts within the younger members mirror a divided society. He explained, “As society becomes more intolerant and disregards rules, these types of occurrences become inevitable.”

Ghimire noted that when a standard convention fails to occur within an organization, it can lead to unrest and increase the chances of negative events occurring.

Similarly, Tarun Dal is also hosting its convention after nine years.

Whenever political officials become part of an incident, the law enforcement agency frequently faces criticism for failing to take appropriate legal measures against those concerned. In the instance from Lamjung District, the local police were likewise initially criticized for not filing the report.

Despite the events in Lamjung, law enforcement faced accusations from the victims and their relatives for allegedly shielding those who had assaulted them using khukuris. The complaints alleged that the police refused to file reports and assisted the attackers in escaping to safety.

It is said that attempts were made to depict the event as a domestic political issue and resolve it via negotiation.

However, the Nepal Police refutes this claim. “In every instance where we receive a report regarding an occurrence, particularly one involving criminal activity, irrespective of the circumstances, we initiate proceedings accordingly,” stated Ramesh Thapa, who serves as the central spokesman for the Nepal Police. “Our response remains unaffected regardless of the political leanings of individuals present at such scenes.”