Nepal’s embattled Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli will seek a vote of confidence from Parliament on May 10 in his bid to stay in power.
Earlier, PTI had reported that Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli-led government lost majority support in the House of Representatives after the CPN (Maoist Center) led by Pushpakamal Dahal “Prachanda” officially withdrew support to it.
The party submitted a letter to this effect to the Parliament Secretariat, informing about its decision to withdraw support to the government, according to a senior leader of the party, Ganesh Shah. Chief Whip of the Maoist Center Dev Gurung handed over the letter to officials at the Parliament Secretariat, he said.
After handing over the letter Gurung told the media persons that the party decided to withdraw support to the Oli government as the government had breached the Constitution and the government’ s recent activities have posed threat to democratic procedures and national sovereignty.
After the withdrawal of support, the Oli government has lost its majority in the House of Representatives.
President Bidya Devi Bhandari, on the recommendation of Prime Minister Oli, summoned a Parliament session on May 10 to obtain a vote of confidence in his government, according to an official statement.
Oli, 69, requires at least 136 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives, the lower house of Parliament, to win the confidence motion as four members are currently under suspension.
During a Cabinet meeting on Sunday, Oli said that he would try to win the trust of Parliament to stay in power, Nepalease media reported.
Oli”s decision comes amid the current chaotic state of political affairs in the country that emerged since the Prime Minister”s controversial move to dissolve the House of Representatives in December last year.
“The Prime Minister will seek a vote of confidence on May 10,” Lila Nath Shrestha, Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, told the Kathmandu Post. “This is just a day-long session.”