Nepal President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolves Parliament; fresh mid-term polls in November

The move followed a notice from the Office of the President which said that it could appoint neither KP Sharma Oli, the incumbent prime minister, nor Sher Bahadur Deuba, Nepali Congress president, as claims made by both, to form a new government were insufficient.

Kathmandu: Nepal has once again plunged into political turmoil as President Bidya Devi Bhandari dissolved the House of Representatives and announced fresh general elections in November amid the raging coronavirus pandemic in the country.

The surprise announcement comes after a presidential statement said neither the caretaker Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, nor opposition leader Sher Bahadur Deuba were able to demonstrate a majority to form a new government by the Friday deadline set by Bhandari.

"The President has dissolved the House of Representatives and ordered the first phase of general elections on November 12 and the second phase on November 19," a presidential statement issued after midnight said.

"If the Prime Minister appointed according to clause (5) fails to get the vote of confidence or if any member fails to be appointed as Prime Minister, the President shall, on the recommendation of Prime Minister, dissolve the House of Representatives and fix a date to conduct another election within six months," Article 76 (7) of the Constitution states.

The council of ministers recommended conducting the first phase of the poll on November 12 and the second phase on November 19.

In a dramatic turn of events of Friday, embattled Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and the Opposition parties staked separate claims for the formation of a new government by submitting letters of support from lawmakers to the President.

However, Bhandari stated that the claims made by both Oli and Deuba have failed to meet the required provisions and as such, neither Oli nor Deuba can form the new government.

This is for the second time that the Parliament has been dissolved. Earlier, President Bhandari had dissolved the House on December 20 last year but later it was reinstated on February 23. The decision to dissolve the house came hours after a new government formation bid failed.

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