The Downfall of Madhesh-Centric Parties: A Review of 2082

Kathmandu. Following the Gen-Z movement, Terai-Madhesh-centric parties were completely wiped out in the House of Representatives elections held on Falgun 21. None of the Madhesh-based parties managed to win a single seat. This result, coming towards the end of 2082, was not favorable for these parties.

In fact, the downward journey of these parties began with the start of 2082.

Several parties were active in Madhesh, including the Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) led by Upendra Yadav, the Loktantrik Samajbadi Party (LSP) led by Mahantha Thakur, the Rastriya Mukti Party, Nepal led by Rajendra Mahato, the Janamat Party led by Dr. CK Raut, the Nepal Sadbhawana Party led by Anil Jha, the Terai Madhesh Loktantrik Party led by Vrishesh Chandra Lal, the Nagarik Unmukti Party with Resham Chaudhary as patron, the Janata Pragatisheel Party led by Hridayesh Tripathi, and the Nepal Federal Socialist Party led by Mohammad Rizwan Ansari.

Among them, a merger has now taken place between JSP Nepal, LSP Nepal, and the Janata Pragatisheel Party. Although Tamlo-Pa was also part of that merger, it separated from JSP Nepal by announcing its withdrawal from the unified party during the election period.

• JSP's Downward Spiral

The bad days for JSP Nepal began in Baisakh 2081 when Ashok Rai separated from the party to form the JSP. With the party split, JSP not only left the federal government but also lost its grip on the Madhesh Province government. After 2082 began, JSP Nepal, despite supporting the federal government (Congress-UML coalition), could not join it. It was not that they did not try, but they had demanded leadership of the Madhesh Province government as a condition for joining the federal government.

However, the Madhesh Province government was led by the Janamat Party under Dr. CK Raut. There was no possibility of JSP Nepal securing that government. After failing to get the Madhesh Province government, JSP Nepal withdrew its support for the federal government.

This was the time when JSP Nepal's distance from the Nepali Congress, UML, and the then-Maoist party increased simultaneously. Its relationship with the Maoists and UML was already poor, as it accused them of playing a role in splitting its party. The Congress also increased its distance from JSP Nepal because the party left the government despite requests not to.

JSP Nepal remained neither in the federal government nor in the provincial government. As it grew weaker, it reached out to various parties for unity and cooperation. It held talks with several Madhesh-centric parties. Ultimately, it only merged with the LSP Nepal led by Mahantha Thakur.

• The Front Also Dissolved

A seven-party Federal Democratic Front centered on the Terai-Madhesh had been formed, with the participation of JSP Nepal. However, the front could not gain momentum to advance political issues. It could not reach a consensus for the elections. The parties in the front contested the elections individually. Many commented that if they had contested together, the results might have been different. The front has almost dissolved after the elections.

• Madhesh Government Did Not Favor Them

Meanwhile, the unity between LSP Nepal and JSP Nepal failed to send a message to the Madhesh people. The unity, which happened behind closed doors, could not be spread to the grassroots level by JSP Nepal and LSP Nepal.

After the Gen-Z movement on Bhadra 23 and 24, the LSP had the opportunity to lead the Madhesh Province government, but it did not last long. After the party that betrayed them on the day of the vote of confidence, Jitendra Sonal, who became Chief Minister from LSP, resigned. Following that, there was significant turmoil in Madhesh Province. Madhesh-based parties even staged protests. Meanwhile, taking advantage of the opportunity, Saroj Yadav of the UML took the oath as Chief Minister in a cottage in Mahottari. A case was filed in court regarding this incident. The verdict came in favor of the Madhesh-based parties, but the Congress secured the Chief Minister's post. The LSP, JSP Nepal, and Janamat Party also participated in the government formed under Congress leadership.

Participating in the government in this way did not send a good message to the public, and its impact was seen in the elections held on Falgun 21.

There was a Gen-Z movement in the country. There was a great sacrifice for change, but the Madhesh-centric parties scrambled for power. That was where the downward journey of the Madhesh-based parties began.

• Where is the LSP General Convention?

In 2078, leaders from the Mahantha Thakur faction separated from JSP Nepal to form LSP Nepal. Although LSP Nepal set dates for its general convention multiple times since its formation, it could not hold one by the end of 2082. Although LSP Nepal was not a dynamic party, it never left the side of the Madhesh Province government. It remained in the government under some pretext or another. It also maintained its participation in the federal government. There was not only internal dispute over sending only Sharatsingh Bhandari to the government, but the then-party vice-chairman Sarvendra Nath Shukla even threatened to leave the party, but because of Mahantha Thakur's sole dominance in LSP Nepal, it was not heard.

Later, after the merger with JSP Nepal, the party's dispute subsided. However, after Mahantha Thakur was elected as a member of the National Assembly, he fielded his daughter Minakshi Jha as a candidate in his constituency (Mahottari-3), which also caused a dispute within the party. This had an impact on the election. In other words, the unified JSP Nepal could not win a single seat. Mahantha Thakur's daughter Minakshi Jha also lost the election.

• 'Crisis' in Janamat

Since the beginning of 2082, a crisis had started in the Janamat Party, chaired by Dr. CK Raut. All preparations for a merger with the Nagarik Unmukti Party, patronized by Resham Chaudhary, were complete. A program was also organized at the Nepal Academy. But before the announcement of the merger, Resham Chaudhary was arrested, but he was released immediately as he was arrested based on a fake letter.

However, the merger between the Janamat Party and the Nagarik Unmukti Party did not happen. On one hand, the merger did not take place, and on the other, the issue of taking action against Janamat Party Vice-Chairman Deepak Sah and Treasurer Surendra Narayan Yadav was heating up. The Janamat Party even sent Surendra Narayan Yadav to custody. On the other hand, Vice-Chairman Sah was expelled from the party after disciplinary action.

Senior leaders of the party started leaving one by one. Meanwhile, Chairman Raut appointed his brother Jayakant Raut as Vice-Chairman. That also became a subject of dispute within the party. But no one had the courage to speak against it.

During the Gen-Z movement, Chairman Raut had instructed his Chief Minister of Madhesh Province, Satish Singh, to resign from his post. According to that instruction, he resigned via Facebook, but later, when he started working as Chief Minister again, the Janamat Party forcibly removed him from the post.

At that time, his party was on the verge of splitting when Deepak Sah split the Janamat Party by maintaining 40 percent of the members. However, the party could not split after CK Raut filed a case in the Supreme Court. At that same time, leaders including Vice-Chairman Abdul Khan and spokesperson Dr. Sharatsingh Yadav left the party.

Although the Janamat Party participated in the Madhesh Province government, the organization was not running well. It also remained isolated in the Federal Democratic Front by holding a dissenting opinion. Before the Gen-Z movement, the front had decided to field joint candidates in the by-elections to be held in Rupandehi, but the Janamat Party announced it would field its own separate candidate by holding a different opinion. However, that by-election did not happen after the Gen-Z movement.

After the Gen-Z movement, the Janamat Party became even weaker organizationally. As a result, it could not win a single seat in the election. Dr. CK Raut was limited to third place in the constituency (Saptari-2) from where he had won the election. His brother Jayakant also lost the election.

After being defeated in the election, Chairman Raut has announced that he will never contest parliamentary elections again.

• The Plight of Nagarik Unmukti Party

The Nagarik Unmukti Party, patronized by Resham Chaudhary, split after the Gen-Z movement. Resham had registered another Nagarik Unmukti Party Nepal in the name of a Gen-Z youth. On the other hand, the Nagarik Unmukti Party, chaired by Ranjita Shrestha, merged with the Nepali Communist Party, coordinated by Prachanda.

In this election, the Nagarik Unmukti Party could not win a single seat. The reason for this is internal conflict within the party. Since the party was formed, it was never peaceful. There was always a struggle between this husband and wife regarding leadership.

Resham wanted to run the party by becoming the chairman himself, but Ranjita was not ready for that. There were repeated disputes over this. Resham Chaudhary had called a national gathering and removed Ranjita from the chairmanship, but the Election Commission did not recognize it. While this struggle was going on, the Gen-Z movement happened, and after that, Resham registered a separate party.

• Ramu-Pa in Uncertainty

The Rastriya Mukti Party, Nepal, led by Rajendra Mahato, could not determine a clear direction. The 'Rastriya Mukti Kranti', opened with the spirit of revolution, had created a kind of movement atmosphere. It came into the limelight by raising various issues across the country. Once it gained attention, it was given the form of a party. After the party was formed, a lot of time was spent on selecting office bearers.

Even though office bearers were selected somehow, many leaders became dissatisfied. Then, slowly, leaders started leaving the party. Ramu-Pa had taken a proposal to the Democratic Front to contest the election under a single election symbol, but after that proposal was rejected, the Ramu-Pa led by Chairman Rajendra Mahato participated in the election under a single election symbol in alliance with the JSP led by Ashok Rai and the Nagarik Unmukti Party, Nepal, patronized by Resham Chaudhary, but that too could not have much impact on the election.

Thus, reviewing the political activities of Madhesh-centric parties in 2082, they suffered more regression than progress. The parties seemed confused. Due to lack of clarity on issues, weak organizational direction, and internal strife in every party, the parties could not move forward.

The only progress made by Madhesh-based parties in 2082 seems to be the entry of leaders like Ramkumar Sharma and Rameshwar Ray Yadav into JSP Nepal and the merger with LSP. Even when they got the leadership of the Madhesh Province government, it fell quickly due to infighting. The result of all this was seen in the election held on Falgun 21, which pushed the Madhesh-based parties to zero.