Nepal Prime Minister KP Oli loses trust vote in Parliament

Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli lost a trust vote in the country’s House of Representatives on Monday, The Kathmandu Post reported.

Oli will be submitting his resignation to President Bidhya Devi Bhandari who in turn will ask Parliament to explore formation of the new government within a week, according to The Indian Express.

The prime minister secured 93 votes in the Lower House of Parliament during a special session convened on the directives of the president. He needed 136 votes to win the trust vote in the 271-member House.

With Oli failing the trust vote, the president needs to invoke Article 76 (2) of the Nepalese Constitution to form a new government. Article 76 (2) states that in cases where no party has a clear majority in the House of Representatives, the president shall appoint as the prime minister a member of the House who can command majority with the support of two or more parties, according to The Kathmandu Post.

Nepal plunged into a political crisis on December 20 after Bhandari had 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, the Supreme Court overturned that decision and recommended a meeting of the House in 13 days.

Days after Oli decided to go for a floor test, the country’s Maoist Centre party, led by Pushpakamal Dahal Prachanda, withdrew support to his government, reducing it into a minority one.

The ruling Nepal Communist Party has been witnessing an intra-party feud between two factions, one led by the prime minister, and another by Prachanda, also the executive chair of the party. In June, Oli had claimed that efforts were being made to oust him after his government redrew the country’s political map by incorporating three strategically important Indian territories.