In a landmark verdict, Nepal’s Supreme Court on Monday reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives for the second time in five months and directed to appoint Nepali Congress leader Sher Bahadur Deuba as prime minister by Tuesday.
In May, Oli directed the president to dissolve the House of Representatives, Parliament s lower house, and announce new elections later this year. The decision was challenged in the Supreme Court by a coalition of opposition parties that said they had the support of a majority in Parliament to form a new government.
The Supreme Court also ruled Monday that the reinstated House of Representatives should meet within a week, when the leader of the main opposition party, Sher Bahadur Deuba, is expected to call a vote of confidence.
It is the second time the Supreme Court has reinstated the House of Representatives this year.
A five-member Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana also said that the bench has concluded that party whip does not apply when lawmakers take part in the voting to elect a new Prime Minister as per Article 76(5) of the Constitution.
The bench comprising four other senior-most justices — Dipak Kumar Karki, Mira Khadka, Ishwar Prasad Khatiwada, and Dr Ananda Mohan Bhattarai — had concluded hearings in the case last week.
President Bhandari had dissolved the 275-member lower house for the second time in five months on May 22 at the recommendation of Prime Minister Oli and announced snap elections on November 12 and November 19.
As many as 30 petitions, including one by the opposition alliance led by the Nepali Congress, were filed against the dissolution of the House by the President.
A petition was filed by the Opposition parties’ alliance with the signature of 146 lawmakers demanding the reinstatement of the lower house of Parliament and the appointment of Deuba as the prime minister.
Nepal plunged into a political crisis on December 20 last year after President Bhandari dissolved the House and announced fresh elections on April 30 and May 10 at the recommendation of Prime Minister Oli, amidst a tussle for power within the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP).
On February 23, the apex court reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives, in a setback to embattled Prime Minister Oli who was preparing for snap polls.
Oli, who is currently heading a minority government after losing a trust vote in the House, has repeatedly defended his move to dissolve the House of Representatives, saying some leaders of his party were attempting to form a “parallel government”.
(With inputs from agencies)
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