Report in The Kathmandu Post, Mar 5, 2023
Prime Minister and CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal has directed the Sudurpaschim parliamentary party to vote in a favour of a trust motion of Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah (of Nepal Congress).
An earlier meeting of the parliamentary party had decided not to give the vote of confidence, citing it has not received a clear direction from the central leadership.
Maan Bahadur Dhami, a provincial assembly member of the Maoist Centre, said they will act as per the party’s direction.
“We have been instructed to vote for the chief minister in the floor test. We will act accordingly. The Cabinet will be expanded after March 19,” said Dhami.
Provincial leaders of the party were earlier reluctant to vote in favour of the confidence motion. Maoist Centre provincial assembly leader Khag Raj Bhatta, while meeting the chief minister on Saturday evening, had stressed hammering out a power-sharing deal before the floor test.
Shah will take a floor test at the meeting of the provincial assembly slated for 1pm.
Nepali Congress provincial assembly leader Shah was appointed Sudurpaschim chief minister on February 9. Province chief Dev Raj Joshi had appointed Shah to the post as per Article 168(3) of the constitution after CPN-UML’s Rajendra Singh Rawal lost the position of chief minister after the trust motion.
Shah needs to win the confidence of the provincial assembly within 30 days of the appointment.
At least 27 votes are needed to secure a majority. In the 53-member assembly, Nepali Congress has 19 members, the Maoist Centre 10, the Nagarik Unmukti Party seven and the Unified Socialist three members. One independent member has also supported the government.
https://kathmandupost.com/sudurpaschim-province/2023/03/05/maoist-centre-directs-sudurpaschim-assembly-members-to-vote-in-favour-of-trust-motion
