KATHMANDU: CPN (UML) Deputy General Secretary Yogesh Bhattarai has publicly dismissed rumors of an impending vertical split within the opposition party, assuring cadres that an ongoing restructuring process will instead yield greater unity.

Taking to social media, Bhattarai posted a rhythmic message aimed at quelling mounting anxieties among the rank-and-file.

“Rest assured, there is no greed, there is no sin,” Bhattarai wrote. “There will be reorganization, but there will be no split, there will be no breakdown. Everyone will reconcile and become further united.”

Bhattarai’s intervention comes amid an intensifying leadership standoff following the March 5, 2026, elections.

Long-time loyalists Vice Chairman Bishnu Prasad Paudel and General Secretary Shankar Pokharel have openly revolted against Chairman KP Sharma Oli, pushing for structural leadership changes.

The rift escalated over the weekend during a party restructuring task force gathering in Kathmandu, where Paudel remarked, “If we are to save the UML, we must restructure it.”

In response, a furious Chairman Oli met with Bagmati Province leaders, labeling Paudel and Pokharel “greedy and malicious” and warning that they could split the party. Insiders report that Oli has slid into the minority within his own Central Committee.

Analysts view Bhattarai’s specific choice of words—”no greed, no sin”—as a direct attempt to diffuse Oli’s counterattack.

As the restructuring task force prepares to launch its month-long nationwide provincial tour, the debate within the UML has firmly shifted from how the party should be reorganized to under whose leadership it will move forward.