Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli Secures Two-Thirds Majority in Confidence Vote

Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli won a confidence vote in parliament on Sunday, securing a two-thirds majority. Oli received 188 votes from the 275-member parliament, with 74 votes against and one abstention, as announced by House Speaker Devraj Ghimire.

The Prime Minister needed at least 138 votes to pass the trust motion. Ghimire confirmed, “The number of honourable members of parliament present in today’s vote division stands at 263. Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, as per Article 76 (4) of the Constitution, presented the trust motion in the House of Representatives, the votes in favour stand at 188 votes, against the motion 74 and one abstinent.”

Ghimire added, “The trust motion proposed by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli as per the Constitution of Nepal, Article 76(4), claims the confidence of the House of Representatives, which has 188 votes in support and that number is the majority on the basis of the number of members present in the meeting. I hereby announce that the proposal of trust motion filed by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has been endorsed with majority.”

Oli, who was appointed Prime Minister on July 15 by President Ramchandra Paudel, was required to seek a vote of confidence within 30 days as stipulated by Article 76(2) of the constitution. He secured the position by presenting signatures from 166 lawmakers.

During the motion, Oli revealed the details of a seven-point agreement between the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML, aimed at addressing the country’s pressing issues. Oli emphasized, “The Constitution is a document that can be amended. It indeed is a dynamic vibrant document. It can be and would be amended based on public demand. It is not subjected to be amended based on interest; rather, it moves according to the need of the time.”

He added, “Constitution amendment is not something that is done when someone wants to. We also don’t move forward with it being driven by insistence or prejudice; we are not rigid about the provisions of the constitution. Instead, it should be updated based on the needs of the people, the country, the times, and development.”

Previously, on July 12, President Ram Chandra Paudel had called for parliamentary parties to claim the Prime Minister position after Pushpa Kamal Dahal lost a confidence vote. Oli, supported by the Nepali Congress and smaller parties, submitted signatures from 165 lawmakers claiming majority support.

The Constitution of Nepal requires a Prime Minister to achieve a majority of 138 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives and to secure a vote of confidence within 30 days of appointment. Oli, who first served as Prime Minister from October 2015 to August 2016, was reappointed in February 2018 and served until May 2021. His tenure included two dissolutions of parliament, which were overturned by the Supreme Court.

As per a deal between Congress chief Sher Bahadur Deuba and UML chairman Oli, the two parties will share power on a rotational basis until the next general elections in 2027.

(With ANI Inputs)
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