Both Congress-Maoist claim leadership of Koshi Province

Kathmandu: The discussion of the formation of the new government has begun in Koshi Province. The discussion has drawn attraction after the fall of the CPN(UML) led government.

Nepali Congress and CPN (Maoist) have been claiming the leadership for the government. But the situation is not easy in Koshi Province. The unity of all the parties except UML and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) cannot even reach the majority vote.

We had a conversation with Uddab Thapa about the collapse of the government. We asked him,’ Now, who will lead the government?’ He replied, ‘Now, the coalition government would lead the province. I will lead the government.’
Thapa said that Congress was the biggest party in the coalition and it was normal for him to claim. He said that he would discuss with the leaders of the central alliance to appoint him as the CM.

Similarly, Maoist leader Indra Bahadur Angbo said that he would claim the leadership of the government. He said, ‘The formation of the government here would reflect the central government. Our party has a strong claim for the position of the Chief Minister.’

Although both parties have claimed the position, the process is not an easy one. Because UM-RPP and the coalition have equal votes. Except for the Speaker, both sides have 46-46 MPs in the assembly. This has created difficulty in the mathematical possibility of the formation of the government.

This seems to have increased the role of the Speaker during the voting. Congress-Maoist have been expecting the support of the Speaker to become the Chief Minister. But UML has been claiming that the Speaker cannot cast a vote. There is no possibility of forming a new government, in the absence of a vote of the Speaker. This might result in the mid-term elections.