President Bidya Devi Bhandari is making preparations to call on the political parties to stake claim for the formation of a new government.
According to a source at President's Office, Sheetal Niwas, President Bhandari will probably call on the parties to submit their claims for the majority of the parliamentarians for the formation of the government in line with Article 76 (2) of the constitution on Monday.
The President will administer the oath of office and secrecy to the lawmaker who stakes a claim for the post of Prime Minister by securing the majority of lawmakers with the support of two or more two parties in line with Article 76 (2) since none of the parties garnered 138 seats in the House of Representatives (HoR) to form the government in line with Article 76 (1).
The Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday submitted a report of election results to the President. Similarly, the President's Office also submitted the report to the Parliament Secretariat, paving the way for the President to take the process forward to form the government.
Article 76 (1) of the constitution stipulates that a Parliamentary Party (PP) leader, who commands a majority in the HoR, can be appointed as the Prime Minister, whereas it is not mandatory to be PP leader to become the Prime Minister in accordance with Article 72 (2).
Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba is intending to become the Prime Minister even though the ruling coalition has not officially decided on a prime ministerial candidate. Similarly, CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has also expressed interest towards it.
Deuba has asked Prachanda to wait until the election of the PP leader. Hence, if there is an agreement between Deuba and Prachanda, they can submit claims for the majority for the appointment of the Prime Minister.
Likewise, if the current ruling alliance fails to strike a deal and another coalition is formed, the same process can be applied.
Constitutional Provision:
Article 76. Constitution of Council of Ministers: (1) The President shall appoint the leader of a PP that commands majority in the HoR as the Prime Minister, and the Council of Ministers shall be constituted under his or her chairpersonship.
(2) In cases where no party has a clear majority in the HoR under clause (1), the President shall appoint as the Prime Minister a member of the HoR who can command majority with the support of two or more parties representing to the HoR.
In 2074 BS, KP Sharma Oli had been appointed as the Prime Minister in accordance with Article 76 (2) with the support of the CPN (Maoist Center) and the CPN (UML), prior to becoming the PP leader. Oli was subsequently elected the PP leader of the UML.
According to sources, President Bhandari might give a maximum of 3 to 4 days to the parties to form a new government.
According to the Office of the President, based on the EC-verified report, the President can appoint an elected member of the HoR as the Prime Minister and administer an oath of office and secrecy.
A lawmaker does not need to take an oath to be appointed as Prime Minister.
"The Office of the President has sent the report provided by the EC to the Parliament Secretariat. Based on this report, the Secretariat can pick the senior most parliamentarian and send him/her to the Office of the President for oath-taking," said a Sheetal Niwas official, adding, "Once the senior lawmaker is sworn-in, the Parliament Secretariat can call a House meeting for the oath-taking of the lawmakers."
"The Parliament Secretariat will take the process of lawmakers' oath-taking forward. No one can bar the President from taking the process forward for the formation of the government," said the official. "Lawmakers ought to take oath of office to participate in the parliamentary proceedings but the same is not mandatory for the appointment of the Prime Minister."
