The government is making preparations to register an amendment bill in the parliament to revive the provision of the Political Parties Act, 2073 which stipulates that 40 percent of lawmakers is mandatory in the central committee (CC) and parliamentary party (PP) to split parties.
A meeting of the Council of Ministers held on Wednesday entrusted the Ministry of Home Affairs to register the bill in the parliament to this effect.
On August 25, 2021, the then government introduced an ordinance to amend the Section 33 of the Political Parties Act, 2073 which stipulates that at least 40 percent of lawmakers is mandatory in both the CC and PP committee to split the party.
With this amendment, the 20 percent of lawmakers either in the central committee or parliamentary party committee would be sufficient to split the party.
Madhav Kumar Nepal had defected from the CPN (UML) to form the CPN (Unified Socialist) in accordance with this provision.
On August 25, 2021, as many as 29 lawmakers out of 154 in both the houses of the federal parliament had reached the Office of the Election Commission and submitted their signatures. Similarly, 56 CC members had submitted their signatures. Out of the 203-member UML CC, 191 were sitting members of the CC then.
After reaching 20 percent in the central committee, the Election Commission gave the party a certificate. The then Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) also split under the leadership of Mahantha Thakur.
Following the split of the UML, then Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba managed to garner majority paving the way for him to become the Prime Minister with the Supreme Court's mandate.
On September 27, 2021, the Council of Ministers led by Deuba had withdrawn the ordinance, which resulted in a legal void in the provision of splitting the political parties.
A provision has it that the previous legal provision has to be revived once the ordinance is withdrawn.
