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Nepal’s new Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba sprang a surprise by seeking a vote of confidence in the reinstated lower House of Representatives and comfortably won it, averting a general election in the Himalayan nation amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.
Deuba, the 75-year-old President of the Nepali Congress who was appointed as the prime minister as per the Article 76(5) of the Constitution on July 12 following Supreme Court’s intervention, secured 165 votes in the 275-member House on Sunday.
A total of 136 votes were required for Deuba to win Parliament’s confidence. He had to seek a trust vote within one month after being appointed as prime minister. However, in a surprise move, he sought a vote of confidence on the first day of reinstated House.
Deubas failure to win the trust vote in the House would have lead to dissolution of the House and snap polls within six months in Nepal.
Sunday’s outcome of the trust vote paves the way for Prime Minister Deuba to remain in office for next one and half year, until fresh parliamentary election is held, the Nepalese media reported.
As many as 249 lawmakers participated in the voting process and 83 of them voted against Deuba while one lawmaker remained neutral.
“I hereby declare that the motion of the vote of confidence tabled by Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has been endorsed with a majority House Speaker Agni Sapkota announced.
