Madhesis may support Maoist Govt

The Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) offers conditional support to the new government being formed by the Maoists. Anirban Roy reports.

The Madhesi Janadhikar Forum (MJF) on Sunday offered conditional support to the new government being formed by the Maoists.

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Upendra Yadav, the coordinator of Madhesi Janadhikar Forum demanded that Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala should immediately step down and amend the interim constitution for the formation of the new government. The MJF chief said his party was ready to extend cooperation to the Maoists if Madhesi issues, including the demand for an autonomous state, are addressed on a priority basis.

The MJF, which bagged 52 seats in the Constituent Assembly to become fourth largest party, has warned it would launch new revolt if these issues were sidelined.

Yadav said Nepal was passing through a critical political period, primarily because of the complications generated by the interim constitution in formation of the new government.

The political complications became more intricate after the Nepali Congress demanded that Koirala (and not the Maoists) be allowed to lead the new government. “The provision in the interim constitution stating the necessity of a two-thirds majority to form a government should be amended to state that a simple majority can form a government,” Yadav said. The Communist Party of Nepal (UML) has also demanded the two-thirds majority rule be scrapped. “The MJF will play its role in ending this political deadlock,” Yadav, said. However, the Maoists are yet to respond to the MJF offer.

The MJF’s support to the Maoists has come as a surprise as they have been at loggerheads over ideological differences, mainly on Terai issues. A gunbattle between the two last year led to killing of 29 Maoists at Gaur in Rautahat district.

Interestingly, Yadav is a former Central Committee member of the Maoists and left the insurgent outfit in 2003.