Nepali Congress, CPN-UML strike deal to oust PM 'Prachanda'; to form new alliance

Nepal's two largest parties, Nepali Congress and CPN-UML, ink midnight power-sharing deal to form new government.

In a dramatic political development, Nepal's two largest parties — Nepali Congress and CPN-UML — have inked a midnight power-sharing deal to form a new 'national consensus government' to replace the coalition government led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda.”

Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) chairman and former prime minister K.P. Sharma Oli, reached an understanding on forming a new coalition on Monday midnight, according to former foreign minister Narayan Prakash Saud.

Mr. Deuba, 78 and Mr. Oli, 72, agreed to share the Prime Ministerial position on a rotation basis for the rest of the term of the Parliament, said Mr. Saud, who is also a Nepali Congress central member.

Nepali Congress, the largest party in the House of Representatives (HoR) has 89 seats at present while CPN-UML has 78 seats. The combined strength of the two large parties is 167, which is sufficient for a majority of 138 seats in the 275-member HoR.

The two leaders also met on Saturday to lay the ground for a potential new political alliance between the two parties, following which Mr. Oli's CPN-UML ended its association with the Prachanda-led government barely four months after extending support to it.

Under the agreement that is likely to be finalised on Tuesday, the CPN-UML chief Mr. Oli will lead the government in the first phase of the remaining term of Parliament. The two leaders have agreed to share the premiership for one and a half years, turn by turn, Mr. Saud said.

The two leaders tentatively agreed to form a new government, amend the Constitution, and work out a power-sharing formula, which they reportedly shared with a few confidants, media reports said, quoting multiple senior leaders from both parties.