Kathmandu: Nepali Congress (NC) General Secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa has said that the Special General Convention (SGC) was convened to respond to growing public dissatisfaction and resentment toward mainstream politics.

Addressing the inaugural session of the two-day SGC in Kathmandu on Sunday, Thapa said political parties must seriously address the public anger expressed during the Gen Z movement last September. He noted that the resentment was directed at the government in which the Nepali Congress was a coalition partner.

Gen Z Movement a Wake-Up Call
Thapa said the younger generation is angry, hurt and dissatisfied due to corruption, misgovernance and systemic anomalies. “There is frustration over the dominance of ‘nepo babies’ in the republican system established after the abolition of the monarchy,” he said, adding that the SGC was called to listen to and address these voices.

He clarified that although the SGC initiated by the two general secretaries may appear as an internal power struggle, it is fundamentally a struggle over ideology, values and party norms.

“A democratic party like the Nepali Congress cannot afford to ignore the resentment shown by thousands of people who took to the streets in the name of the Gen Z movement,” Thapa said.

Regret Over Absence of Party Leadership
Referring to the absence of party President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Acting President Purna Bahadur Khadka, Thapa expressed regret that senior leadership did not attend the SGC. Leaders close to the party president have boycotted the convention, calling it unconstitutional.

Stating that the Nepali Congress is a national force, Thapa said the party bears responsibility for addressing national issues and maintaining public confidence. He recalled that the NC has historically earned and sustained public trust since the democratic movement of 2007 BS.

‘Old Way of Running the Party Has Collapsed’
Addressing the convention, Thapa said the long-standing practice of running the party by ignoring grassroots members has now ended.

“The way the party was run for a long time has collapsed from today. No one can ignore party members anymore,” he said, adding that leadership must now respect those at the base rather than expect obedience from below.

He stressed that the SGC is not about who gains or loses positions, but about how the party should be run. “This is a struggle over principles, not personalities,” he said.

Decisions of Closed Session to Be Respected
Thapa said the special general convention was called on the demand of party representatives, not at the initiative of the leadership. He pledged to accept whatever decisions emerge from the closed session.

“You asked for a change in policy and leadership. I did not ask for it—you did,” he said. “Whatever the closed session decides is acceptable to me.”

He described the Nepali Congress as “a party of living people, not a party of corpses,” emphasizing that debate and dissent are integral to the party.

Focus on Youth and Future
Thapa underlined the need to create an environment that instills hope among young people and encourages them to stay in the country. He reiterated that, according to the party statute, no individual is above the general convention.

Concluding his address, Thapa said the SGC must live up to its name by making meaningful and special decisions that reflect the will of the party’s representatives.