KATHMANDU, AUGUST 24
The Supreme Court issued a short-term interim order against Koshi Chief Minister Uddhav Thapa ordering him not to take any long-term and policy decisions till the adjudication of the case filed against him by Koshi Province Assembly member Hikmat Karki who represents the CPN-UML in the Koshi Province Assembly.
This order, passed by a single bench of Justice Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada means that the problems of Koshi Chief Minister Uddhav Thapa, whose election to the post in July was annulled by the Supreme Court, are not over yet.
Karki had filed a writ petition at the Supreme Court yesterday challenging the trust vote won by Thapa on Monday. Thapa had received 47 votes, including that of Assembly member Israil Mansuri who had chaired the Assembly proceedings.
Karki argued that Mansuri, being the chair of the Assembly, could not take part in the trust vote and hence his vote in favor of CM Thapa on Monday was unconstitutional.
On Monday, both Assembly members Israil Mansuri and Geeta Timilsina had taken turns to chair the assembly meetings.
In the 93-member Koshi PA, 47 Assembly members voted in favor of Thapa while 30 voted against him.
The apex court observed that the vote cast by lawmaker Mansuri who had chaired the Assembly meeting and the declaration that Thapa obtained 47 votes appeared to be in conflict with Articles 168 (2) and (4) and 186 of the constitution, parliamentary practice, constitutional morality, and the case laws propounded by this court, therefore, it cannot be accepted that Koshi Chief Minister Thapa obtained vote of confidence constitutionally.
Article 186 of the constitution stipulates Voting in Provincial Assembly: All questions submitted for a decision in the Provincial Assembly shall be decided by a majority vote of the members present and participating in voting. The member presiding over the meeting shall not have the right to vote The court listed the case for priority hearing and fixed September 1 for full hearing.
The court also ordered the defendants to furnish their written reply by 5:00 pm on August 30.
The writ petition has demanded that Thapa's vote of confidence be revoked as he had gained the vote in an unconstitutional manner.
Karki also demanded that he be appointed chief minister as per clause (3) of Article 168 of the constitution, stating that Thapa had not secured the trust vote constitutionally.
As the chief minister has no chance of obtaining vote of confidence and he has been barred from that opportunity again, as leader of the largest parliamentary party in the Province Assembly, it is my constitutional right to be appointed chief minister of Koshi in accordance with Article 168 (3) of the constitution, Karki wrote in his petition.
Article 168 (3) provisions for the formation of a minority government in case a majority government cannot be formed.
Stating that Thapa had violated the Supreme Court verdict passed on July 27, Karki demanded that Thapa be prosecuted for contempt of court.
Thapa was appointed chief minister on August 1. Mansuri was given responsibility to chair the meeting after Deputy Speaker Srijana Danuwar left for Kathmandu early on Monday.
As senior members from opposition parties, including the UML and RPP, were also on sick leave, senior member Mansuri participated in the vote and chaired the meeting, the MPs of CPN-UML surrounded the well and shouted slogans when this took place.
Earlier, Thapa was appointed chief minister for the first time on July 6 with the support of then speaker Baburam Gautam.
After the UML knocked the door of the Supreme Court on July 7, the SC annulled Thapa's appointment on July 27 terming his appointment against the law and jurisprudence.
Thapa had become the chief minister with the support of 47 PA members, including speaker Baburam Gautam.
One needs at least 47 members in the 93-member PA to form the government. On August 1, Thapa was reappointed chief minister of Koshi.
Karki has named the Governor of Koshi Parshuram Khapung, CM Uddhav Thapa, MP Israil Mansuri, and others as defendants. UML is the largest party in Koshi Province with 40 members.
Nepali Congress has 29, CPN-Maoist Centre 13, Rastriya Prajatantra Party six, CPN (Unified Socialist) four and Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal has one member.
A version of this article appears in the print on August 25, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
