"After substantiating the allegation that Janak Bartaula made objectionable statements about comrade Baburam Bhattarai, he has been stripped of all responsibilities for three months," reads a statement issued by the party after a standing committee meeting.[break]
Bartaula, who is from the Saligram Jammakattel faction of the Maoist trade union, had reportedly threatened on May 17 to "finish off" Dr Bhattarai in the next four or five days.
According to party leaders, Bartaula was overheard by Bhattarai´s aides when he was talking to colleagues by cell phone about a plot. The standing committee meeting on Saturday had taken formal statements from Bartaula and PLA security guard Sonip Kshetry about the incident.
The Maoist trade union has been split vertically into three factions led by Jammakattel, Badri Bajgain and Lal Dhwaj Nembang respectively. Jammakattel is close to Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Bajgain is close to Senior Vice-chairman Mohan Baidya and Nembang to Bhattarai.
According to sources, Dahal was forced to suspend Bartaula after the Baidya faction threw its weight behind the Bhattarai faction´s demand for action against him.
The party statement has also stated that it was a mistake to make public statements about the incident and the party´s inability to control such activities.
The party has agreed to solve internal problems amicable from within the party.
The standing committee meeting has also decided to recall ministers from the party who had lost in the Constituent Asssembly (CA) elections by May 28. The ministers include Minister for Youth and Sports Hit Bahadur Tamang and Minister for Peace and Reconstruction Bishwanath Sah.
The party also decided to ensure 40 percent representation of women in the government by May 28. Minister for Women, Children and Social Welfare Jayapuri Gharti has been refusing to take oath of office demanding 33 percent representation of women in the government. Gharti is the only female minister from the UCPN (Maoist) in the cabinet.
Meanwhile, the party has postponed its scheduled mass mobilization and mass meetings in the major cities till Wednesday.
Chairman Dahal and other senior leaders are scheduled to address the mass meeting in Kathmandu.
Similarly, the party will hold a march by its "people´s volunteers" on Wednesday.
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