Deputy Speaker’s removal hits a snag

Kathmandu, September 12 — The plan to remove Deputy Speaker Indira Rana has hit a setback due to the lack of a two-thirds majority in Parliament from the ruling coalition, which includes the Nepali Congress and the CPN-UML.

The Congress and UML had planned to submit a proposal to remove the Deputy Speaker on Wednesday. However, the proposal was put on hold as they could not secure the required two-thirds majority.

During a meeting of the ruling coalition at the Prime Minister's residence in Baluwatar last Monday, it was agreed to move forward with the proposal to remove Deputy Speaker Rana, who was accused of breaching protocol by writing to the U.S. Embassy to schedule interviews for unauthorized individuals to travel to the U.S.

The Congress and UML had prepared to submit the proposal on Wednesday after working on it through Tuesday and Wednesday morning. However, the plan was disrupted as the required majority was not guaranteed.

On Wednesday morning, the Nepali Congress had urged its office bearers and former office bearers to support the removal of the Deputy Speaker. Earlier, on Tuesday, the UML had demanded her resignation from Parliament. Both parties instructed their MPs to remain in Kathmandu until September 19 as part of their strategy.

Currently, the ruling coalition includes 88 MPs from the Nepali Congress, 77 from CPN (UML), seven from the Janata Samajwadi Party led by Ashok Rai, four from Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP), and four from the Nagarik Unmukti Party, totaling 180 MPs. This number is four short of the required two-thirds majority of 184 votes. To reach the required majority, the Congress and UML had been working to gain support from Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal (JSP-N) and Janamat Party. However, since neither Janamat nor JSP-N provided a positive response, the proposal to remove the Deputy Speaker was stalled.

A leader from the ruling coalition said, "The proposal was ready to be submitted on Wednesday, but we fell short by four MPs. Although there was an expectation that Janamat and JSP-N would support us, they did not provide a positive response, causing the proposal to be delayed."

Janamat Party had shown signs of not readily accepting the proposal to remove the Deputy Speaker. Janamat Party Chair Dr. CK Raut publicly expressed his opposition to the proposal, while Abdul Khan, a leader and vice chairman of Janamat, indicated potential support during Monday's meeting.

The Congress and UML also attempted to persuade Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal as an alternative, but their efforts were unsuccessful. JSP-N Upendra Yadav did not make an immediate decision, leading to further delays in the proposal.

Janamat Party vice chair Deepak Sah confirmed to RatoPati that the official stance of his party is against removing Deputy Speaker Rana. He said, "Our party's official line is that Deputy Speaker Rana should not be removed. The party has maintained this position, and leaders have been vocal about it."

Another coalition party, the Nagarik Unmukti Party, has not yet made an official decision on the proposal. Chair Ranjita Shrestha stated that no decision had been made regarding the Deputy Speaker, and the party’s stance would be clarified in a meeting scheduled for September 16.

LSP, another party in the coalition, has indicated its readiness to accept the coalition’s decision. Minister and LSP leader Sharad Singh Bhandari stated, "We are in the government and coalition. We are ready to accept whatever decision the coalition makes."

Minister Ramesh Lekhak has been tasked by the Nepali Congress with ensuring a two-thirds majority by discussing with other parties. However, Congress spokesperson Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat mentioned that no new developments have occurred regarding the Deputy Speaker's removal. Mahat stated, "There has been no new development in the Deputy Speaker issue. There is no question of moving forward or backward at this moment."