Keep your fingers crossed

Alternative politics in Nepal remains an excellent idea on the drawing board only.

The Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP), which came into being a little over a year ago with a promise of an alternative force, fell apart on Monday. It became apparent that the unity between the Sanghiya Samajbadi Party, led by Upendra Yadav and Baburam Bhattarai, and the Rastriya Janata Party, led by Mahantha Thakur, in April last year was a marriage of convenience rather than conviction. Following escalating conflict between the constituents, both factions had laid claim to the party name and the election symbol. But after a “headcount” of the party’s central executive committee members, the Election Commission handed the JSP to the Yadav-Bhattarai group, leaving Mahantha and Co high and dry. The Mahantha group can now either remain within the JSP or register a new party of its own. No matter what, the idea of an alternative force has gone down the chute.