Uncertainty Looms Over Lumbini Province Chief Minister Change Despite Coalition Agreement

Butwal. Following an agreement reached between the Nepali Congress and CPN-UML at the central level, UML's parliamentary party leader, C.N. Acharya, assumed leadership of the Lumbini Province government last year in Shrawan. Although the agreement stipulated that the Congress would take over the government leadership in Falgun 082, concrete discussions on the matter have not yet advanced.

At that time, Sher Bahadur Deuba was leading the Congress. The Congress leadership has changed through a special general convention ahead of the House of Representatives elections. Therefore, it is unclear how the new Congress leadership will view the agreement made by the old leadership, and what the UML's stance is on that agreement now.

A provincial assembly member told Ratopati that although the Congress wishes to claim leadership of the government, the change in party leadership at the center has prevented them from exerting pressure on the UML.

The leader of the Congress parliamentary party in Lumbini Province is Dilli Bahadur Chaudhary, who is also a former Chief Minister. If the UML-Congress alliance remains intact, he will become the Chief Minister again.

Chaudhary had stated a few days ago that he would travel to Kathmandu in the near future to discuss this matter. According to Congress Chief Whip Jamuna Dhakal, while the previous agreement should be implemented, formal discussions at the provincial level have not moved forward as no further decisions have been made at the central level yet.

Lumbini Province Assembly currently has 83 members. A minimum of 42 MPs' support is required for a majority in the Provincial Assembly. Congress has 27 MPs and UML has 29 MPs in the Provincial Assembly. If the alliance between these two parties remains, a majority is easily achieved in the Provincial Assembly.

Dhakal mentioned that the agreement was made at the central level at that time and emphasized that pressure must be exerted from the center for the implementation of the agreement now. She expressed confidence that the UML would be positive about giving the Chief Minister position to the Congress in the province.

Meanwhile, UML Chief Whip Tulsi Chaudhary stated that there has been no formal or informal discussion at the provincial level regarding the implementation of the power-sharing agreement. He informed that this issue has been overshadowed by the focus on recent political developments and the review of the House of Representatives elections.

Convenient Majority for the Alliance

Lumbini Province Assembly currently has 83 members. A minimum of 42 MPs' support is required for a majority in the Provincial Assembly. Congress has 27 MPs and UML has 29 MPs in the Provincial Assembly. If the alliance between these two parties remains, a majority is easily achieved in the Provincial Assembly.

Currently, the 12-member cabinet under the leadership of C.N. Acharya includes UML, Congress, Lospa, and Jasp.a.

Although the seat count of smaller parties in the Lumbini Provincial Assembly has slightly fluctuated recently, the seat numbers for Congress and UML remain unchanged.

Some Congress provincial assembly members suggest that since disputes persist at the center, which could affect the province, it might not be appropriate to push forward the issue of changing the Chief Minister immediately.

Following the unification of parties related to the Maoist Center, the number of CPN MPs has reached 13, while the representation of Nagarik Unmukti and Unified Socialist has dropped to zero after the party unification.

Congress leader Jamuna Dhakal stated that if the old agreement is implemented, the change in government leadership in Lumbini will be smooth. She stressed that the party's center must pay attention to this matter.

Some Congress provincial assembly members believe that since disputes remain at the center, which could impact the province, it is not suitable to advance the matter of changing the Chief Minister immediately.

UML Chief Whip Tulsi Chaudhary also asserted that agreements were made across all seven provinces from the center, stating that it would be more appropriate for the process to move forward from the center rather than the provincial level.

The UML-led government has already begun preparations for formulating the budget for the next fiscal year.