Nepal's Maoist government once again in power - 'Prachanda' became the new Prime Minister of Nepal

Nepal new PM: In Nepal, CPN-Maoist Center (CPN-MC) President Pushpa Kamal Dahal "Prachand" has finally usurped the chair of the new Prime Minister by toppling the current PM Sher Bahadur Deuba. President Bidya Devi Bhandari has appointed "Prachanda" as the country's new prime minister following a fast-changing turn of events on Sunday. Whereas before this, the leader of Nepali Congress and the current PM Sher Bahadur Deuba was likely to become the PM again. But amidst the day's political developments, Prachanda staked claim to form the new government with the support of the opposition CPN-UML and other smaller parties. After this he was appointed as the PM by the President.

Who is Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda'?

Born on 11 December 1954 at Dhikurpokhari in Kaski district near Pokhara, Prachanda worked in the background for about 13 years. He joined mainstream politics when the CPN-Maoist abandoned the path of a decade-long armed insurgency and took the path of politics.

He led a decade-long armed conflict from 1996 to 2006 that finally ended with the signing of a comprehensive peace accord in November 2006. Earlier, in a meeting held at Oli's residence Balakot, apart from former Prime Minister Oli, leaders of Prachanda and other small parties agreed to form the government under the leadership of Prachanda.

An agreement has been reached between Prachanda and Oli to lead the government alternately (on the basis of rotation) and Oli expressed his consent to make Prachanda the first Prime Minister.

This is how PM became

The deadline given by President Bidya Bhandari to political parties to form a coalition government under Article 76(2) of the Constitution was expiring on Sunday evening. Sources said Prachanda along with CPN-UML president KP Sharma Oli, Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSP) president Ravi Lamichhane, Rashtriya Prajatantra Party chief Rajendra Lingden and other top leaders went to the President's office and staked claim to form the government. An important meeting of CPN-UML, CPN-MC, Rashtriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and other smaller parties led by former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli was held here, in which all the parties agreed to form the government under the leadership of 'Prachanda'. The motion claimed the support of 165 members in the 275-member House of Representatives, including 78 from the CPN-UML, 32 from the CPN-MC, 20 from the RSP, 14 from the RPP, 12 from the JSP, six from Janmat and the Civil Liberation Party. Three members are involved. Sources said the letter staking claim to form the government was signed by 165 MPs.

Oli will become PM after Prachanda

Prachanda and Oli have agreed to lead the government on rotation basis and Oli has expressed his consent to make Prachanda the first Prime Minister. CPN-UML general secretary Shankar Pokharel told reporters after the meeting, "Since the Nepali Congress, as the single largest party, will form the government under its leadership in accordance with Article 76(2) of the Constitution within the time limit given by the President, failed to form, so now CPN-UML has taken the initiative to form a new government under Prachanda's leadership with the support of 165 MPs. Prachanda walked out of the five-party coalition after they could not agree on power-sharing, as Deuba rejected Prachanda's condition of becoming Prime Minister in the first half of the five-year term. Deuba and Prachanda had earlier reached a tacit understanding to head the new government by turns. Maoist sources said that during talks with Prachanda on Sunday morning, the Nepali Congress (NC) staked claim for both the key posts of President and Prime Minister, which was rejected by Prachanda, resulting in the failure of the talks.

The NC offered the post of speaker to the Maoist party, which was rejected by Prachanda. Earlier in the day, CPN-MC secretary Ganesh Shah said, "The alliance is now broken as last-minute talks between Deuba and Prachanda remained inconclusive." CPN-UML president KP Sharma reached Oli's private residence to seek support to become prime minister, which was also attended by leaders of other smaller parties. The Nepali Congress is the largest party in the House of Representatives with 89 seats, while the CPN-UML and CPN-MC have 78 and 32 seats, respectively.