Kathmandu, Aug. 19 -- The Nepali Congress on Tuesday began preparations for its 15th general convention, scheduled for October 2-5, despite opposition from the faction led by Sher Bahadur Deuba, the former chief of the party.

The party has deployed 85 election officers to all 77 districts to conduct lower-level conventions. Party president Gagan Kumar Thapa announced the move at a training for election officers at the Congress central office in Sanepa, Lalitpur, and appealed to leaders outside the current central working committee to join.

The move comes as the Deuba faction prepares to move court, seeking an interim order to suspend the convention schedule until the Supreme Court settles the faction's review petition concerning the leg...