KATHMANDU, May 1: The much-anticipated merger between the Janamat Party and the Nagarik Unmukti Party (NUP) was all set to be announced on Wednesday at the Nepal Academy. The venue was decorated, and leaders from both parties had started arriving.
However, just before the formal announcement, NUP patron Resham Chaudhary was unexpectedly arrested by plainclothes police officers who served him an arrest warrant. The arrest left party members and supporters confused and chanting slogans in protest. It was later revealed that a non-authorized letter from a Supreme Court (SC) staffer, Mahiman Singh Bista, had led to the arrest. Following the confusion and legal chaos, Chaudhary was released after official clarification from the SC later in the day.
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Due to the unexpected disruption, the merger declaration was put on hold. Although both parties met later at a café in Mid-Baneshwor, Janamat Party Chair Dr. CK Raut couldn’t attend due to a prior engagement, leaving the future of the merger uncertain.
Despite the hiccup, Nagarik Unmukti Party Spokesperson Damodar Pandit said the merger would be announced within three days at most. “Everything is finalized. We’ll just align the leaders’ schedules and announce the merger soon,” he said.
Janamat Party Spokesperson Dr Sharad Singh Yadav echoed the sentiment, saying there’s no reason for further delay.
Meanwhile, discussions continue between Raut and Chaudhary to resolve some pending issues. While Chaudhary prefers a complete package announcement including party name, leadership and flag, Raut reportedly favors a phased approach. Sources said the disagreement over this detail also slowed a final consensus during their Tuesday midnight talks. Despite these differing views, leaders say the unresolved issues won’t derail the overall unification.
