Nepal's SC overturns PM Oli's decision of parliament dissolution

In a landmark decision, Nepal's Supreme Court on Tuesday overturned Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's December decision to dissolve the House of Representatives and asked authorities to summon a meeting of the Parliament within 13 days.

Monday’s court order came in response to several cases filed with the court charging that Prime Minister Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli’s decision to dissolve the legislature was unconstitutional.

In his letter recommending President Bidya Devi Bhandari that the House be dissolved, Oli had argued that he controlled 64 percent of majority in the House, that there was no possibility of forming a new government and that the country needed a fresh mandate of the people to ensure stability.

The bench said that the government failed to provide sufficient grounds to dissolve the House. Though Oli had said he was forced to dissolve the House because infighting in his Nepal Communist Party created obstacles for him to govern, the bench refused to dwell on the intentions.

The court’s decision was welcomed by the opposition as well as members of the dissident faction of Oli’s own party.

This verdict means 69-year-old Oli, who was elected in 2018 following his party’s landslide win in the 2017 election, might face a no-confidence vote.

Nepal has been in political turmoil since PM Oli made the sudden decision and called for elections 18 months ahead of schedule amid the coronavirus pandemic that has hit the tourism-dependent economy hard.

There has been a power struggle between Oli and the leader of the former Maoists rebels, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, who is also co-chair of Oli’s party. The two had previously agreed that they would split the five-year term between them, but Oli has refused to allow the former rebel leader to take over, leading to a split in the party.


Source: kathmandupost.com, aljazeera.com

Written by Siddhant Sharma