In a significant turn of events, Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, commonly known as 'Prachanda', announced a Cabinet reshuffle on Monday following the termination of a nearly 15-month alliance with the Nepali Congress. This decision stemmed from significant disparities between the top leadership of both parties.
Prachanda forged a new partnership with the former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's party, the UML. Consequently, three ministers were sworn in without portfolio assignments during a ceremony at the President's Office, Sheetal Niwas.
Padam Giri from the CPN-UML, Hit Bahadur Tamang from the CPN (Maoist Center), and Dol Prasad Aryal from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) took their oaths of office and secrecy, marking the initiation of this new political alignment.
With a collective strength of 142 seats, comprising the CPN-UML, Maoist Center, RSP, and JSP, the alliance surpasses the minimum requirement of 138 seats in the 275-member House of Representatives.
The termination of the alliance between the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) and the Nepali Congress occurred as a culmination of escalating differences between the top leaders, as cited by a CPN-Maoist Centre party official.
Ganesh Shah, Secretary of the CPN-Maoist, expressed the necessity of seeking a new alliance due to the lack of cooperation from the Nepali Congress towards the Prime Minister.
Prachanda, who secured his third term as Prime Minister on December 25, 2022, with the support of the Nepali Congress, severed ties with the party – the largest in the House of Representatives. He then aligned with the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist), led by Oli, despite their previous discord.
The CPN-UML withdrew its support from the Prachanda-led government the previous year, following disagreements over endorsing the presidential candidate of the main opposition party.
Tensions between the Maoist Centre and Nepali Congress escalated further due to disagreements between Nepali Congress leader and Finance Minister Mahat and Prachanda over budget allocations for specific projects.
The divide widened as Nepali Congress President Deuba advocated for the party's senior leader and newly elected lawmaker Krishna Sitaula to chair the National Assembly, contrary to Prachanda's intentions.
Earlier on Monday, Prachanda convened a meeting with CPN-UML chairman Oli at the Prime Minister's residence, Baluwatar, where they agreed to form a new alliance and government under Prachanda's leadership.
Following this meeting, leaders from three political parties, including Prachanda, Oli, and RSP's Ravi Lamichhane, convened at Baluwatar to deliberate on the modalities of the new alliance and government formation.
In the November 2022 general elections, the Nepali Congress emerged as the largest party in the House of Representatives, securing 89 seats out of 275. The CPN-UML followed with 78 seats, trailed by the Maoist Centre with 32 seats.
The RSP, Rastriya Prajatantra Party, Janata Samajwadi Party, and CPN-Unified Socialist secured 20, 14, 12, and 10 seats respectively. A minimum of 138 members' support is required to form a government, making the CPN-UML a significant ally for the new Prachanda-led government.
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