Gandaki Chief Minister Adhikari to undergo a floor test on Sunday

POKHARA: Gandaki Chief Minister Khaga Raj Adhikari is scheduled to undergo a floor test on Sunday.

Adhikari, the parliamentary party leader of CPN-UML, registered a motion for a vote of confidence at the Gandaki Province Assembly Secretariat on Friday morning.

He was appointed as Chief Minister on April 7. As per Article 168 (4) of the Constitution, he needs to secure a vote of confidence within 30 days of his appointment.

Earlier, the former Chief Minister, Surendra Raj Pandey, had challenged Adhikari’s appointment at the Supreme Court, arguing that Adhikari made a claim to form the government by including the support of the Speaker whose role is neutral as per the constitution.

Responding to the petition, the Supreme Court ruled that the majority should be counted based on the total seats, excluding the Speaker. UML leaders argue that this means Adhikari needs the support of 30 members out of the 59-member Provincial Assembly to pass the floor test.

UML has 22 members, while its coalition partner CPN (Maoist Center) has eight members, including the Speaker. Additionally, the coalition has the backing of an independent member, Rajiv Gurung. This means the coalition has 30 members, excluding the Speaker, which will be sufficient to pass the floor test.

The opposition has been claiming that the majority should be counted on the basis of total seats i.e. 60.