Newly-appointed chief minister of Koshi province Uddhav Thapa was sworn in on Wednesday.
Province chief Parshuram Khapung administered the oath of office and secrecy to Thapa. Three ministers were also sworn in on Wednesday.
Khapung had appointed Thapa chief minister according to Article 168 (2) of the Constitution on Tuesday. Thapa had staked claim for the post with signatures of 47 lawmakers from Nepali Congress (NC), CPN (Maoist Center), CPN (Unified Socialist) and Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP).
Baburam Gautam of Maoist Center, who resigned as speaker of the Koshi provincial assembly on Tuesday, has been appointed minister for economic affairs and planning. Kamal Jawegu of Unified Socialist is the new minister for physical infrastructure, and Pradeep Sunuwar of NC has been given the Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation.
The parties in Koshi’s ruling coalition had agreed that all the parties, except for the chief minister’s party, would get ministries of their choice.
Nirmala Limbu of JSP had chosen the Ministry of Health but she was not sworn in on Wednesday.
UML had moved the Supreme Court after Thapa was appointed chief minister on July 6 with the support of 46 lawmakers and the then speaker Gautam.
Thapa was removed as chief minister on Thursday after a full bench of the apex court ruled his appointment unconstitutional, stating that the speaker cannot support formation of a government. He was appointed to the post for a second time in less than a month on Tuesday.
Maoist Center asked Gautam to resign as speaker this time so that the coalition would have 47 lawmakers required to form a new government headed by Thapa again. Gautam was reluctant in the beginning, but he agreed to resign after Maoist Center Chairman and Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal assured to make him a minister.
Jeevan Acharya of Maoist Center was the minister for economic affairs in the previous government headed by Thapa. According to Maoist leaders, Acharya, who is Dahal’s son-in-law, could join the Thapa government in the next Cabinet expansion.
