JSP Nepal withdraws support from government

KATHMANDU: Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) Nepal has withdrawn its support from the government.

A meeting of JSP Nepal’s parliamentary party held in Kathmandu on Wednesday made the decision.

The party’s Central Executive Committee, which met in Lalitpur on June 23, had instructed its parliamentary party to review its position on supporting the Oli-led government.

The ruling coalition partners, the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, had urged JSP Nepal not to withdraw its support. On Monday, Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chairperson KP Sharma Oli, along with Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba, requested JSP Nepal Chairperson Upendra Yadav not to exit the ruling coalition.

Yadav has long expressed frustration that the party’s expectations and commitments made during the formation of the coalition a year ago have not been fulfilled. He has had serious disagreements with the ruling coalition, especially over the Land Bill. The ruling coalition was eventually forced to withdraw the Land Ordinance after Yadav said the party would not vote for it in Parliament.

While JSP Nepal’s withdrawal will not immediately impact the coalition government, it has pushed the ruling alliance into a minority in the National Assembly.

The ruling coalition, which previously had 31 members in the 59-member upper house, will now have only 28 votes—two short of a majority.