Tag: oli

KP Sharma Oli, with the backing of the Nepali Congress and smaller parties, had submitted the signatures of 165 lawmakers, claiming majority support in the parliament for the Prime Ministership…reports Asian Lite News

With the expiration of the deadline to stake the claim for the Prime Minister, Nepal President Ram Chandra Paudel has appointed KP Sharma Oli (72) as the next Prime Minister.

Oli is the single leader who staked his claim for the post in support of the Nepali Congress.

Nepal President Paudel called the political parties in the Nepali parliament on Friday evening to stake a claim for the Prime Minister after Pushpa Kamal Dahal lost a confidence motion. The President had called for a claim of stake as per Article 76 (2) of the Constitution.

“Honourable President Shree Ram Chandra Paudel as per Article 76 (2) of the Constitution of Nepal has appointed member of the House of Representatives Shree KP Sharma Oli as the Prime Minister of Nepal,” the President’s Office said in a statement.

According to the statement, the oath ceremony for Oli has been scheduled for 11 am (NST) on Monday.

Along with Oli, a group of ministers will also be inducted into the cabinet for which the parties are holding rounds of discussions.

Oli and Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba jointly signed an application for the President to appoint the UML chief as the new prime minister on Friday evening, right after the results of the vote of confidence.

Oli, with the backing of the Nepali Congress and smaller parties, had submitted the signatures of 165 lawmakers, claiming majority support in the parliament for the Prime Ministership.

The Constitution of Nepal mandates a Prime Minister to cross a majority of 138 in the 275-strong House of Representatives to take over as Prime Minister. Oli became the Prime Minister for the first time in October 2015, soon after the promulgation of the constitution that year, and remained in power until August 2016.

Moreover, the Prime Minister is also mandated to take a vote of confidence within 30 days of appointment to prove his support.

Following the general elections in 2017, Oli, who was able to usher in nationalist sentiment amongst the people siding with China, formed a government and remained in power from February 2018 to May 2021.

Oli again was appointed as Prime Minister under the constitutional provision of 76 (3) from May 2021 to July 2021 after staking claim as the parliamentary leader of the largest party in parliament.

While in power for about three years, Oli dissolved the parliament twice, which was reinstated by the Supreme Court issuing a mandamus.

The Nepali Congress and CPN-UML (Communist Party of Nepal- Unified Marxist Leninist) signed an agreement on July 2 to divide 9 and 8 ministries, respectively, on the council of ministry.

According to the July 2 deal between Congress chief Deuba and UML chairman, Oli, the two parties will lead the government on a rotational basis until the next general elections in 2027. But, the deal has not been made public to date. (ANI)

Prachanda approved China rail deal ahead of trust vote

A day before Nepal’s Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ lost a vote of confidence in Parliament, he approved an agreement to link Nepal with China by rail under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). According to MyRepublica, this decision has more operational than political significance, aligning with Nepal’s involvement in Chinese President Xi Jinping’s large-scale infrastructure project.

“The Cabinet meeting on Thursday approved the ‘Strengthening the Development Cooperation in Building the Trans-Himalayan Multidimensional Connectivity Network’ agreement with China,” stated Communication Minister and government spokesperson Rekha Sharma. However, a minister noted that this is an initial decision and project implementation details are yet to be finalized.

On Friday, Prachanda lost the vote of confidence after coalition partner Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) withdrew support. Prachanda received only 63 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives, with 194 against him, leading to a new government likely headed by ex-Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli.

Prachanda’s move is seen as a step towards implementing BRI projects, including the Kerung-Kathmandu railway and broader infrastructure development along the Nepal-China border. Earlier, the Nepali Congress, before forming a power-sharing deal with UML, had resolved to “only accept grants and not loans under the BRI project.” The government was also set to decide on implementing the 2017 BRI agreement with China, pending at the cabinet.

The BRI has faced global criticism for China’s debt diplomacy, exemplified by the Hambantota port in Sri Lanka, which was leased to China for 99 years after Sri Lanka defaulted on Chinese loans. India has also protested against the BRI’s USD 60 billion China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, which passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

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Oli had dissolved the House on May 21 and declared the elections after he lost the vote of confidence in the House….reports Asian Lite News

In a serious blow to Nepal’s embattled Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, the country’s Supreme Court on Tuesday quashed the recent Cabinet reshuffle and relieved 20 ministers from their posts in Oli’s cabinet.

Oli, who slipped to caretaker status after the dissolution of the House and declaring the elections in November, had expanded the Cabinet and added 20 new faces on June 4 and June 10.

Oli had dissolved the House on May 21 and declared the elections after he lost the vote of confidence in the House.

The Supreme Court said in its interim order that a caretaker Prime Minister cannot reshuffle the Cabinet after declaring the elections.

That goes against the spirit of the Constitution, the interim order of the court stated, while issuing an order not to implement the decision to expand the Cabinet.

A division bench of Chief Justice Cholendra Shamsher Rana and Justice Prakash Kumar Dhungana issued the order in the name of the caretaker government to release the newly appointed ministers from their appointments.

The Supreme Court interim order has asked Oli to relieve 20 ministers appointed after the House dissolution from their duties. With this, the size of Oli’s Cabinet has been reduced to five from 25.

The court’s decisions came in response to several writ petitions that were filed earlier this month, challenging Oli’s move to induct new ministers in the caretaker government.

The ruling Nepal Communist Party-UML has termed the Supreme Court’s interim order to relive 20 ministers as an ‘unexpected’ move.

“This Supreme Court’s decision is unexpected to us and this will take the country to a very complex mode,” party spokesperson Pradeep Gyawali told the media after the court’s verdict.

“We have concluded it as ‘unexpected’ but we’ll make our position clear once we read the full verdict,” he added.

The Supreme Court’s decision has been welcomed by the opposition Nepali Congress.

“This is a very positive decision as Prime Minister Oli has been assaulting the Constitution time and again. The Supreme Court has corrected Oli’s mistake,” said senior Nepali Congress leader, Ram Chandra Poudel.

“No caretaker government in the world expands the Cabinet after the declaration of elections. The court has taken its decision in favour of democracy.” Poudel added.

Oli had twice dissolved the Parliament. First in December last year, which was later reinstated in February. After his united party, the Nepal Communist Party, split in March during a verdict, Oli lost the majority in Parliament and lost the vote of confidence.

Again on May 21, he dissolved the House and declared the elections, which is being heard in the Supreme Court.

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The decision is likely to polarise the politics of Himalayan nation for the time-being, where opinions are largely divided over whether elections can take place or not, reports Asian Lite News

Nepal Prime Minister KP Olis decision to dissolve Parliament has led to controversy, uproar and opposition in the Himalayan nation.

On the recommendation of Oli’s Cabinet, President Bidhya Devi Bhandari on Friday midnight dissolved the House and declared snap polls for November 12 and 19.

The decision is likely to polarise the politics of Himalayan nation for the time-being, where opinions are largely divided over whether elections can take place or not.

Another looming question is whether to take part in the elections which, according to some, are carried out in an unconstitutional and undemocratic way.

“Dissolution of the House is an attempt to political coup and declaration of so-called elections is a fraud,” former Prime Minister and ruling party leader Madhav Kumar Nepal said in a statement on Saturday.

Though Oli and Nepal are in the same party, the latter’s faction is running a parallel structure after serious differences erupted between the two.

Oli is the chairman of Nepal Communist Party —UML.

“This is regression and this is also the attempt to rape Parliament. The President’s Office has hit back the Constitution. This is regression part two. I condemned the act of the Prime Minister and have asked all to protest against it,” said Nepal.

According to party leaders, the proximity between the President and Prime Minister is the reason behind this attempt.

Oli had earlier dissolved the House on December 20, 2020, but the Supreme Court reinstated it this February 23.

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Ram Chandra Poudel, a senior leader of the opposition Nepali Congress party, said Bhandari and Oli have committed a fraud against the Constitution.

“At a time when opposition parties stake claim over the new government with the majority vote, the sudden dissolution of the House is an unconstitutional and undemocratic act and we will fight legal, political and constitutional battles against it,” he said.

The decision to dissolve the House came hours after a new government formation bid had failed.

President Bhandari on Thursday called on the formation of a new government by Friday 5 p.m. as per Article 76 (5) of the Constitution.

After failing to win the House’s confidence, Oli recommended the President to initiate the new government formation.

Before the deadline ended, Oli and opposition party leader and President of Nepali Congress Sher Bahadur Deuba had stake claims over the new government with respective majority support.

While invalidating both petitions registered by Oli and Deuba, Bhandari stated that the claims made by the two failed to meet the required provisions and hence neither can form the government.

Some lawmakers have signed both sides and some took action against those who supported beyond the party line, so claims made by both Oli and Deuba did not meet the criteria, a notice issued by the President Office said late Friday.

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Nepali Congress has called a meeting of opposition parties on Saturday to chart out a future plan against the dissolution and declaration of the midterm elections.

Former Prime Minister and Maoist leader Baburam Bhattarai said that in the midst of the alarmingly rising Covid-19 pandemic, the dissolution has plunged Nepal into an endless crisis and may lead to a full counter-revolution.

“There may be no election and the federal democratic constitution may collapse, resist it,” he warned.

Meanwhile, Nepal on Saturday reported 8,591 new coronavirus cases in the last 24 hours, taking the cumulative count of infections in the country to 5,05,643.

The death toll in the Himalayan Nation has reached 6,153 with 129 COVID-related fatalities in the last 24 hours.

Citing the country’s Health Ministry, Kathmandu Post reported that 389 people tested positive in a total of 743 antigen tests.

However, 373,684 infected people have recovered from the disease so far, including 8,848 of them in the last 24 hours.

A total of 19,357 RT-PCR tests were performed in the past 24 hours. As of Saturday, 2,897,503 RT-PCR tests have been carried out across the country, Kathmandu Post reported.

According to Kathmandu Post, in the past 24 hours, Province 1 witnessed 1,204 new infections, Province 2 recorded 574 cases, Bagmati registered 3,875 cases, Gandaki reported 369 cases, Lumbini reported 2,032, Karnali reported 616 cases and Sudurpaschim reported 1,023 cases.(with inputs from ANI)

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Oli, who was reappointed on Monday night, is planning to take the oath of office and secrecy on Friday afternoon, according to his office….reports Asian Lite News

After opposition parties failed to form a coalition government, Nepal President Bidhya Devi Bhandari has reappointed KP Sharma Oli as the 42nd Prime Minister on the basis of leading the largest party in Parliament.

Oli, who was reappointed on Monday night, is planning to take the oath of office and secrecy on Friday afternoon, according to his office.

Sher Bahadur Deuba, leader of the primary opposition Nepali Congress party, was the frontrunner for the post of Prime Minister but he couldn’t garner a majority vote as fourth largest party, Janata Samajbai Party (JSP), was divided to support Oli.

However, the Nepali Congress and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) could not cobble together the numbers to prove a majority.

A faction of the JSP decided to stay neutral, making it difficult for Deuba to stake claim.

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The Mahantha Thakur-Rajendra Mahato’s 19-member faction of the JSP decided to throw its weight behind Oli. The Party has 32 lawmakers overall.

Oli’s Communist Party of NepaleUML has 121 members in the House.

Since no party commands a majority in the House, as the parliamentary party leader of UML, Oli was elected Prime Minister as per constitutional provision.

He again has to prove his majority in the house within a month.

If he fails to garner a majority, either he will dissolve the House or any other individual lawmaker can stake claim over the post of Prime Minister.

But leaders close to Oli said that he preferred to dissolve the house and was interested in holding early elections.

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With the Nepali Congress failing to form the new government with the support of opposition parties, Oli will continue as the Prime Minister as the leader of the largest political party…reports Asian Lite News

Nepal’s opposition parties have failed to form a new coalition government by the 9 p.m. Thursday deadline set by President Bidhya Devi Bhandari.

After Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli lost the vote of confidence on Monday, the President, on the same day, called on political parties to form an alternative government. However, they were unable to muster a majority.

“We, the opposition parties, have failed to garner the required votes to form the new government,” Prakash Sharan Mahat, Joint Secretary General of the Nepali Congress, the primary opposition in the house, said after a party meeting.

“As the primary opposition, the Nepali Congress has claimed the leadership of the government and started talks with the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre and the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal. After the Janata Samajbadi Party refused to support our party President Sher Bahadur Deuba as next Prime Minister, our effort to form the government have come to an end,” he added.

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With the Nepali Congress failing to form the new government with the support of opposition parties, Oli will continue as the Prime Minister as the leader of the largest political party or will form a coalition government with the Janata Samajbadi Party.

The third largest party in the house, the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre, also concluded that chances of forming the government had come to an end after the Janata Samajbadi Party failed to extend support to Deuba as Prime Minister.

After the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist Centre withdrew the support to the Oli government, he, as per the constitutional provision, proposed to seek a vote of confidence but lost.

Meanwhile, Oli remained busy in political manoeuvres and talks with his party leaders and the dissidents, including Madhav Kumar Nepal. Oli also withdrew the action taken against lawmakers of his Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist on Thursday morning in order to stop them from supporting Deuba as Prime Minister.

On the other hand, Oli was also cultivating one section of the Janata Samajbadi Party to remain in power.

President Bhandari is preparing to re-appoint Oli as Prime Minister on Friday.

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