Nepal Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba will seek a vote of confidence in the country’s Lower House on Sunday, reported The Kathmandu Post.
“A proposal for the vote of trust has already been registered in the Parliament Secretariat ” said Shreedhar Neupane, press media advisor to Speaker of House of Representatives Agni Sapkota. “The prime minister will go for a floor test in the second meeting of the House of Representatives today [Sunday].”
Deuba, the chief of Nepali Congress, was appointed the country’s prime minister on July 13 in accordance with the Supreme Court’s verdict. The court had also restored the dissolved House of Representatives.
It was the second time in five months that the court had reinstated the House amid a political turmoil in the country.
Nepal had plunged into a political crisis in December after the president dissolved the House and announced fresh elections between April 30 and May 10 amid a tussle for power within the ruling Nepal Communist Party. But in February, the Supreme Court overturned that decision.
Later in March, the Supreme Court dismissed the legitimacy of the ruling Nepal Communist Party, which was formed in 2018 through the merger of KP Sharma Oli-led Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) and Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda”-led Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre).
On May 10, Oli decided to take a trust vote, which he lost. However, three days later, he was re-appointed as the prime minister after the Opposition parties failed to secure a majority to form the new government.
Bhandari then dissolved the Parliament on May 21 and ordered fresh elections in six months. The decision was based on the recommendations of Oli’s Cabinet. Neither Oli nor the Opposition was able to demonstrate a majority to form a new government in Nepal.
Deuba has one month to win a vote of confidence, according to the country’s Constitution. If he fails to win the vote, the Lower House of Parliament will be dissolved and an election will be held in six months.
The new prime minister needs 136 votes in the 275-member Assembly. Currently, there are 271 members in the House.
Deuba needs the support of the Madhav Nepal faction of the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) to win the vote, according to The Kathmandu Post. However, the party’s Standing Committee has decided to stand against the vote of trust motion.
The Nepali Congress has 61 seats in the Assembly and its coalition partner Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) has 49. The Upendra Yadav-led faction of the Janata Samajbadi Party, which has at least 12 lawmakers, also supports Deuba. Similarly, Rastriya Janamorcha that holds one seat has also decided to vote for Deuba.
Oli’s party, the main Opposition, has 121 members in the Lower House of Parliament, reported PTI.
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