KATHMANDU, JULY 20

Koshi Chief Minister Uddhav Thapa has challenged Nepali Congress central committee member Keshav Budhathoki to accept UML leader and former CM of Koshi Hikmat Kumar Karki as his CM.

CM Thapa today replied to central member Keshav Kumar Budhathoki who had asked whether he considered himself the chief minister.

While speaking at the Congress central committee meeting yesterday, Budhathoki had said it was a mistake to become the chief minister with the support of the speaker and questioned whether Thapa, who is also the Koshi Province president of the Congress, should be considered as the chief minister.

Speaking at the Central Committee today, Thapa told Budhathoki that he would not consider himself the chief minister.

Thapa has also demanded action against Budhathoki, alleging that Budhathoki played a role in de-feating the Congress candidate in the last election.

He is the reason behind the loss of the Congress alliance in Jhapa 2. 'He had messaged not to vote for Deuman Thebe, defeat Thebe.' Thapa said, 'He flew to Australia during election and returned afterit. He ran away when the party was in trouble? Such leaders should be banned and punished.'

Budhathoki had alleged Thebe was running the party arbitrarily against regulations.

Thapa said,'Budhathoki had discouraged the Congress cadres. He is trying to weaken the Congress internally.

Immediate action must be taken against him.'

Meanwhile, Koshi Province Chief Parshuram Khapung, Chief Minister Uddhav Thapa and Assembly Speaker Baburam Gautam have submitted written clarification to the Supreme Court.

'We received files and records yesterday on their be-half,' Supreme Court spokesperson Bimal Paudel told THT.

On July 12, the Supreme Court ordered Khapung, Thapa and Gautam to submit their reply after hearing the writ petition filed by UML parliamentary party leader Hikmat Kumar Karki on July 7.

The coalition comprising Congress, CPN (Maoist Centre), CPN (Unified So-cialist) and JSP-N claimed 47 votes, including 46 MPs and speaker of the Province Assembly Baburam Gautam and the government was formed on July 6 under Thapa's leadership.

Arguing that the speaker should not participate in government formation, the petitioner demanded that Thapa-led government be cancelled and a mandate be given for formation of a government under his leadership.

The UML said formation of the new government in Koshi Province with the signature of the speaker was a blatant violation of the constitution, norms of parliamentary democracy and checks and balances.

Province Chief Khapung, and Speaker Gautam and the new Chief Minister Thapa were named defendants.

Supreme Court Justice Sapna Pradhan Malla had asked Uddhav Thapa to submit all the documents including proposals, endorsements, claims, signatures etc by July 19. The SC has scheduled hearing on the case on July 27.

A version of this article appears in the print on July 21, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.