Nepal PM Prachanda wins vote of confidence in Parliament
The Hindu
Former guerilla leader Prachanda wins vote of confidence in Nepal Parliament amidst opposition boycott and coalition partner withdrawal.
Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ on Monday won a vote of confidence in Parliament, the fourth within 18 months of taking office, amidst sloganeering by the main Opposition Nepali Congress that abstained from the voting.
Mr. Prachanda, 69, a former guerilla leader from the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) — the third largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR) — received 157 votes in the 275-member House of Representatives.
In total, 158 lawmakers took part in the voting. The main Opposition Nepali Congress boycotted the voting process and chanted slogans against Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane, accused of misappropriation of cooperative funds, leading to the delay in the session. One HoR member remained neutral.
Speaker Dev Raj Ghimire announced that Mr. Prachanda had won the floor test as he got a majority in the Parliament.
The vote comes days after one of the coalition partners, Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP), withdrew its support last week for his government while quitting the coalition government.
Also read: Nepal politics, past, present, and future
The government required at least 138 votes to win the vote of trust.
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