The Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), which campaigned against federalism, failed to win a single seat in the direct election for the Gandaki Provincial Assembly.
Although it lost in the direct election, the RPP garnered a significant number of votes in the proportional representation system. These votes led to the election of RPP's Gandaki Province Chairman Pancharam Gurung and central member Bindu Pahadi as provincial assembly members.
The two RPP lawmakers, who always opposed federalism even while delivering speeches in the provincial assembly, did not show any reluctance in availing the facilities provided by the province. The two members, engaged in the game of making and breaking governments, previously voted to make Nepali Congress leader Surendra Raj Pandey the chief minister. In the Pandey-led government, RPP lawmaker Gurung even became the minister for youth and sports.
When the NC and the CPN-UML eventually joined forces, the UML supported NC leader Pandey. The RPP and the CPN (Maoist Center) were left out of the government. Even though it was removed from the government, the RPP has not yet withdrawn the support it gave to the government.
The two RPP lawmakers, who sit on the opposition bench in the provincial assembly, continue to enjoy the facilities provided by the Provincial Assembly.
The province passed a law to provide vehicle facilities to the parliamentary party leaders and chief whips of parties in the provincial assembly. The RPP lawmakers continued to avail vehicle facilities under this provision – Gurung as the parliamentary party leader, and Pahadi as the chief whip.
When the Gen Z movement took place on September 8, the two lawmakers announced their resignations through Facebook. They returned the vehicles to the Parliament Secretariat. RPP spokesperson Mohan Kumar Shrestha also issued a press release on September 9 announcing that all RPP members of the House of Representatives and provincial assemblies would resign.
Despite announcing their resignations on Facebook and through a press release, they have not yet submitted their formal resignations to the Parliament Secretariat.
According to the Gandaki Provincial Assembly Secretariat, none of the 60 lawmakers in the province have submitted their resignations so far. Salaries and allowances are being disbursed in all their names.
The Secretariat said that salaries and allowances, including the Dashain bonus, have also been sent to both RPP lawmakers Gurung and Pahadi, who had announced their resignations in September.
RPP leader Gurung, who had announced his resignation and returned the vehicle, has taken back the vehicle from the Parliament Secretariat. Gurung took the vehicle three days ago, telling Speaker Krishna Dhital that he needed it for work.
According to the Secretariat, Speaker Dhital had been using the vehicle returned by Gurung. Speaker Dhital's vehicle was set on fire by protestors during the Gen Z movement on September 9. After that, he had to use the vehicle returned by Gurung.
"I was using the vehicle returned by Honorable Pancharam Gurung after my vehicle was burned during the Gen Z movement," Speaker Dhital told Setopati, "He took the vehicle the day before yesterday saying he had to go to Lamjung. We have agreed to use it in turns."
Dhital also said that although Gurung announced his resignation, a written resignation has not been received yet.
He said that since there was no budget to immediately buy a new vehicle after the Parliament Secretariat's vehicle was burned, he consulted various ministries to see if any vehicle was available.
Although Gurung took the vehicle, there was no written record of it at the Secretariat, said Shashidhar Subedi, information officer of the SEcretariat.
"Perhaps the speaker has given him the vehicle for a few days; there is no written record at the Secretariat of him using the vehicle," he said.
Repeated attempts were made to contact Gurung via phone and messages for his comments on the matter, but he did not respond.
On September 9, protestors set fire to six four-wheeled vehicles: those used by the speaker, the deputy speaker, UML Parliamentary Party Leader Khagaraj Adhikari, Maoist Center Chief Whip Kushum Budha, and two used by the Parliament Secretariat.
They also torched 12 two-wheelers used by Secretariat staff and others, along with the Parliament building, computers, cameras, and documents.
