Koshi starts preparation to select new Speaker

ITAHARI: The Koshi Provincial Assembly Secretariat has initiated preparations to select a new Speaker.

The position has remained vacant for the past four months following the resignation of Baburam Gautam. The CPN (Maoist Center) assembly member, elected to the position of SPeaker on January 12, stepped down on August 1 to support Nepali Congress (NC) leader Uddhab Thapa to form government in the province.

Deputy Speaker Srijana Danuwar told Himal Press that she has begun discussions with leaders of political parties represented in the provincial assembly regarding the Speaker’s selection. “We will begin the process in the province assembly on Wednesday,” she added.

Koshi Provine Assembly has 93 members. CPN-UML is the largest party in the provincial assembly with 40 members including the deputy speaker. Nepali Congress, which is leading the four-party coalition in the province, has 29 seats. Its coalition partners Maoist Center has 13, CPN (Unified Socialist) has four and Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) has one seat.

Parties need to secure the support of 47 members to form government in the province.

Since the coalition has 47 seats, it will lose the majority if one of its assembly members is selected as Speaker. That is why the coalition is preparing to offer the position to the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) which has six seats in the provincial assembly.