Koshi Province government certain to fall

ITAHARI: The Hikmat Bahadur Karki-led Koshi Province Government is on the verge of collapse.

It is highly unlikely that Karki will secure the required majority of 47 votes to save his government on Thuresday, as the Nepali Congress, CPN (Maoist Center) and CPN (Unified Socialist), and Janata Samajbadi Party (JSP) have all stated that they will not give a vote of confidence to Karki.

After his government fell into the minority with the withdrawal of support by the Maoist Center and JSP, Karki decided to undergo a floor test.

Although Karki sent formal letters to the opposition parties requesting their votes of confidence, the NC, Maoist Center, and Unified Socialist have all declared that they will vote against the proposal, while the JSP has decided to stay neutral.

The UML is the largest party in the Koshi Province Assembly with 40 seats. Its ally, the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), has six seats. Since the government in the easternmost province of the country requires the support of 47 assembly members, the Karki-led government falls short of one member.

Among the opposition parties, the NC and Maoist Center hold 29 and 13 seats, respectively, while the Unified Socialist and JSP hold four and one seat, respectively.

The opposition camp holds a total of 47 seats, including the Speaker, which is sufficient to form a government. However, as the Speaker cannot support a claim to form a government, the opposition camp also falls short of one member.