In a meeting held at the Tarai Madhes Loktantrik Party office, which was attended by top leaders of almost all the Tarai parties except Upendra Yadav, chairman of the newly unified Federal Samajbadi Forum Nepal, the leaders agreed to launch their Janajagaran Campaign soon. Yadav, who was in Pokhara, is said to have assured his party’s participation in the joint struggle.

Putting aside their differences, the parties that earlier broke away from the Madhesi Morcha, agreed to form the alliance again in order to press their agendas.

Sarvendra Nath Shukla, a senior leader of the Tarai Madhes Loktantrik Party, told the Post that they had agreed to go to the people in a unified manner.

Representatives of the TMLP, Sadbhawana Party, Nepal Sadbhawana Party (Anandidevi), Tarai Madhes Sadbhawana Party, Sanghiya Sadbhawana Party and Tharuhat Tarai Party Nepal were among the leaders present in the gathering. The Bijaya Gachhadar-led MJF-Loktantrik, a party to the 16-point agreement that led to the statute draft, was not invited to the meeting.

The Madhesi parties have been asking that the agreements signed by the government with them in the past should be incorporated in the constitution and the delineation of federal states and their names should be decided by the CA.

They stress that the new statute should address the aspirations of the Madhesi, Janajati, Adivasi, Muslim, women and other marginalised communities.

“Some Madhesi lawmakers from the ruling coalition conveyed their moral support to the larger cause,” said a leader. Although they agreed to go jointly about the protest, they have yet to decide the modality of the struggle. “Once Yadav returns to the Capital, we will sit and decide about the protest,” said Shukla.

“Our next meeting will decide the agenda for agitation,” said Laxman Lal Karna of Sadbhawana Party.