KATHMANDU – The provincial government of Sudurpaschim has landed into crisis after the Supreme Court’s recent verdict to strip the ruling party of its name NCP and break a merger process between two biggest communist parties.
After the Supreme Court on Sunday scrapped the merger process that had led to the formation of NCP, the provincial government formed from the support of CPN (UML) has now fallen into minority.
Sudurpashchim’s Chief Minister Trilochan Bhatta now has to gain support of at least 27 provincial lawmakers to sustain the government.
With 25 lawmakers, the CPN (UML) is the largest party in the 53-member provincial assembly of Sudurpashchim.
CPN (Maoist-Center) has 14 lawmakers while Nepali Congress has 12 members in the provincial assembly. Two lawmakers are from Janata Samajwadi Party.
CPN(UML) has hinted that it could continue its support to the CPN (Maoist-Center) to continue with the coalition government.
CPN (UML)’s Sudurpashchim’s parliamentary party leader Prakash Bahadur Shah said that there is not any possibility of the change in the government immediately.
“Though the Supreme Court’s verdict split the united party, we still have political bonhomie,” said Shah, who is also the Minister for Internal Affairs and Law in Sudurpashchim. “The issue of provincial government would be settled after the politics is settled at the national level,” he added
As CPN(UML) does not have a majority to form the government alone, it has to seek support of another party for a coalition government. Local leaders say that the coalition between CPN (UML) and CPN (Maoist-Center) is most likely.
Jhapat Bohora, a CPN (UML) leader, said that the apex court’s order has created an opportunity to forge stronger unity of communist parties.
“We will move ahead with unity among all communist parties including the Biplav-led party,” he said.
