CPN (Maoist Center) parliamentary party leader Kul Prasad KC has staked claims for formation of new government under him submitting signatures of 42 lawmakers of Lumbini to Governor Dharmanath Prasad Yadav on Sunday.
The lawmakers of Nepali Congress (NC), CPN (Maoist Center) and Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) have went to Governor Yadav to stop swearing in of Shankar Pokharel (CM) who was reappointed chief minister (CM) earlier on the day after resigning to avoid no-confidence motion.
Governor Yadav, a former UML leader appointed by PM Oli, reappointed Pokharel despite the lawmakers meeting him in the afternoon and requesting him to stop swearing in of Pokharel as CM pointing that he does not have majority in the provincial assembly.
Governor Yadav appointed parliamentary party leader of UML Pokharel as the new CM as per Article 168(1) of the Constitution which states 'The Provincial Head shall appoint the leader of the parliamentary party with majority in the Provincial Assembly as the Chief Minister and the Provincial Council of Ministers shall be formed under the chairpersonship of the Chief Minister.'
Lawmakers of Nepali Congress (NC), CPN (Maoist Center) and Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) had registered the no-confidence motion on April 19 proposing Kul Prasad KC of Maoist Center as the next CM. But Pokharel inducted four JSP lawmakers into his Cabinet the same day to try to save his government. The four JSP lawmakers have since been expelled from the assembly by the party.
Pokharel resigned earlier on Sunday before the provincial assembly was scheduled to discuss on the motion. He was then reappointed as CM to form a majority government.
There are 87 seats in the provincial assembly of Lumbini. CPN-UML claims it has 41 lawmakers that is enough for majority in the assembly that is only 81-strong now after Maoist Center expelled two lawmakers who joined UML and Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) expelled four lawmakers who joined the Pokharel Cabinet after the no-confidence motion was registered on April 19.
But 42 lawmakers including Dharma Bahadur Lal Srivastav and Ajaya Shahi, who are from the group of Hridayesh Triapthi and Brijesh Kumar Gupta faction respectively and had both won the last election with sun of CPN-UML as the election symbol, have signed supporting KC's claims to become the next CM.
UML had also counted on Bimala Oli, who was elected on ticket of the then CPN formed after unification of CPN-UML and Maoist Center, but she has opted to join Maoist Center and signed on the application submitted to the governor.
