“Alam managed to win the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections when the Congress party was in crisis.” “It’s not a new thing in Nepali politics to have people from criminal backgrounds under party wings,” said Jhalak Subedi, a political observer. “Why should the party bear the brunt of one individual’s wrongdoings?”īut political analysts say any leader’s criminal activity reflects poorly on the party.

“Just as criminal liability is on the individual and not on family members, the leader himself has to face the consequences for his crime,” Lekhak, who is also a former minister, told the Post. Ramesh Lekhak, a central working committee member, said that the party cannot take responsibility for a crime committed by one of its leader.

Now, with questions being asked of government agencies for failing to act for 12 long years as per the court order and ensure justice for victims, the Nepali Congress has also come under scrutiny for protecting Alam.Ĭongress leaders, however, believe that they are not responsible for Alam. The party fielded him in the 2017 elections from Rautahat Constituency 2. Though the Supreme Court in 2012 had ordered that Alam be taken into custody for investigation, the state agencies had failed to act, with Alam’s party continuing to carry him. Alam has long enjoyed the Congress leadership’s patronage, winning the mid-term elections in 1994 to secure a seat in the House of Representatives, winning the 2008 Constituent Assembly elections, and later becoming a minister. The Post spoke to at least five Congress leaders, none of whom appeared to consider Alam’s crimes very serious, despite their heinous nature.įor the Nepali Congress, which is still licking its wounds after a grievous loss in the 2017 elections, the arrest of a prominent lawmaker for a crime so nefarious does not look good, party leaders say.Īlam faces charges of masterminding the mass murder, which took place after an explosion on April 9, 2008, just a day ahead of the Constituent Assembly elections. Party General Secretary Krishna Sitaula, who was the home minister when the incident took place, said he could not recall anything like that occurring during his tenure. He has since said that the Congress will support an independent investigation into the case. Party President Sher Bahadur Deuba, earlier this week, described the arrest as a “conspiracy”, only retracting the statement after massive criticism. Instead, senior leaders have made irresponsible remarks regarding the arrest of Alam for a grisly mass murder that took place in Rautahat 12 years ago.

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