Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to Seek Vote of Confidence in House of Representatives Today
Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is set to take a vote of confidence in the House of Representatives today, following his appointment according to Article 76 (2) of the Constitution of Nepal, 2015, a week ago. While he has up to one month to seek this vote as per Article 76 (4), PM Oli has chosen to proceed within a week of his appointment.
The political landscape, however, remains uncertain. Although 194 votes were cast against former Prime Minister Puspa Kamal Dahal when he sought a vote of confidence in the 275-member House of Representatives (HoR) last Friday, the likelihood of PM Oli receiving support from all MPs who opposed Dahal appears to be diminishing.
Parties such as the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), CPN (Unified Socialist), Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) Nepal, and independent lawmakers have indicated they will vote against PM Oli. Conversely, PM Oli currently enjoys the backing of the Nepali Congress (NC), his own party CPN-UML, Janata Samajbadi Party, Janamat Party, Loktantrik Samajbadi Party (LSP), Rastriya Janamorcha Party, Nagarik Unmukti Party (NUP), and an independent lawmaker.
Among these supporting parties, there are 189 MPs in total: 88 from the NC, 78 from the UML, seven from the JSP, six from the Janamat Party, four from the Loktantrik Samajwadi Party, four from the NUP, one from the Rastriya Janamorcha Party, and one independent MP, Amresh Kumar Singh. Suspended lawmaker Top Bahadur Rayamajhi from the UML and Speaker Devraj Ghimire are not permitted to vote.
On the opposition side, 14 MPs from the RPP, five from the JSP Nepal, 32 from the CPN (Maoist Center), 21 from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), 10 from the CPN (Unified Socialist), and one from the Aam Janata Party, totaling 84 votes, are set to vote against Oli.
To secure a two-thirds majority, PM Oli must garner support from 184 MPs out of 275. The government, formed with the aim of amending the constitution, is likely to achieve this majority. However, if even one fringe party decides not to support the vote of confidence, the government will fail to secure the required majority. As it stands, PM Oli is expected to receive 189 votes in favor and 84 against, totaling 273 votes.
Should the Nepal Workers and Peasants Party remain neutral, the total vote count will reach 272.
