NCP's Prachanda-led faction expels Nepal PM KP Sharma Oli from party's general membership
Kathmandu, Jan 24: The ruling Nepal Communist Party's splinter faction led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal Prachanda' on Sunday expelled Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli from the party's general membership.
The decision to remove Oli from the party's general membership was taken at the Standing Committee meeting of the faction led by former prime ministers Prachanda and Madhav Kumar Nepal after Oli failed to produce explanation to his recent moves as sought by party leadership, sources said.
Earlier in December, the splinter group had removed Oli, one of the two chairmen of the ruling party, as the party chair. Madhav Nepal was named as the party's second chairman. Prachanda is the first chairman of the party.
The Prachanda-led faction on January 15 sought clarification from Oli alleging that he was carrying out activities that go against the party's policies. The faction decided to strip Oli off even from the ordinary membership of the party after he chose not to furnish any clarification, party sources said.
Oli had been accused of violating party statute by the splinter group.
The latest political development came two days after the NCP's splinter faction led a massive anti-government rally, saying the "unconstitutional" dissolution of the Parliament by Prime Minister Oli has posed serious threats to the country's hard-earned federal democratic republic system.
Prachanda last week said that by dissolving the House, Oli has given a blow to the Constitution as well as the democratic republic system which has been established in the country through seven decades of struggle by the people.
Madhav Nepal, who last month replaced Oli as the chairman of the party by Prachanda-led faction, said that the Constitution has not given rights to the prime minister to dissolve Parliament.
Nepal plunged into a political crisis on December 20 after Oli, known for his pro-China leanings, in a surprise move dissolved Parliament, amidst a tussle for power with Prachanda.
His move to dissolve the 275-member House, sparked protests from a large section of the NCP led by Prachanda, also a co-chair of the ruling party.
Oli, who is the chairperson of a faction of the NCP, has said he was forced to dissolve the House after knowing that the Prachanda-led faction was planning to file a no-confidence motion against him and introduce an impeachment motion against President Bidya Devi Bhandari.
Oli-led CPN-UML and Prachanda-led NCP (Maoist Centre) merged in May 2018 to form a unified Nepal Communist Party following victory of their alliance in the 2017 general elections.
After a vertical split in the ruling party following the dissolution of the House, both the factions, one led by Oli and another led by Prachanda, have submitted separate applications at the Election Commission claiming that their faction is the genuine party and asked to provide them the election symbol of the party. However, the Election Commission is yet to decide the matter.
In December, China sent a four-member high-level delegation to Nepal to prevent a split within the NCP. The team - led by a Vice minister of the Chinese Communist Party, Guo Yezhou - held separate meetings with several top NCP leaders before returning home without much success in its mission.
India has described Oli's sudden decision to dissolve Parliament and call for fresh elections as an "internal matter" that is for the country to decide as per its democratic processes.
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Austrian police detain suspect in case of rat poison found in baby food jars on supermarket shelves
Vienna (AP): Police in eastern Austria say a 39-year-old suspect has been arrested after rat poison turned up in some HiPP baby food jars on supermarket shelves in central Europe.
HiPP, which recalled some of its baby food jars in Austria, Slovakia and the Czech Republic after the case came to light last month, said in a statement Saturday it was “greatly relieved” by the arrest, and would provide further updates as verified details come in.
The Burgenland State Criminal Police Office, under the direction of prosecutors, said a probe was launched after poison turned up in a baby food jar purchased at a supermarket in the city of Eisenstadt on April 18.
It said the suspect was being questioned, and that no further details would be immediately provided. The Burgenland public prosecutor's office has announced an investigation into suspected “intentional endangerment of the public.”
The Austrian Press Agency reported that an expert report on the toxicity of the poison was pending. A total of five tampered baby food jars were seized before they could be consumed, APA reported.
Authorities said previously they believe the tampering occurred in 190-gram (6.7-ounce) jars of baby food made with carrots and potatoes for 5-month-olds that were sold from SPAR supermarkets in Austria.
HiPP responded by recalling all of its baby food jars sold at SPAR supermarkets — which include SPAR, EUROSPAR, INTERSPAR and Maximarkt stores — in Austria as a precaution. Vendors in Slovakia and the Czech Republic also removed all of the brand's baby jars from sale.
The company said the recall was not due to any product or quality defect on its part, and said the jars left its facility in “perfect condition.”
Police said a customer at the time of the discovery had reported that a jar appeared to have been tampered with, but no one had consumed the baby food.
