Nepal PM Dahal wins parliamentary vote of confidence, third in 14 months
Nepal's Premier Pushpa Kamal Dahal won a parliamentary vote of confidence on Wednesday, a week after he formed his third coalition in just over a year to head a government which is dominated by the liberal communists.
Dahal, a former Maoist insurgent leader, orchestrated a coalition comprising the Nepali Congress party and other minor factions last year.
However, his recent shift in alliances, citing constraints on his autonomy, led to the formation of a new coalition, primarily backed by the liberal Nepal Communist Party (UML) alongside several smaller parties. Notably, this isn't Dahal's first collaboration with the UML, having briefly led a coalition with them following the 2022 elections.
In the parliamentary vote, Dahal garnered 157 votes, comfortably surpassing the required threshold of 138 in the 275-member parliament. Nonetheless, 110 lawmakers opposed him, highlighting the persistent political polarization within Nepal's political landscape.
Prime minister Dahal's journey to the premiership has been marked by his transition from a rebel leader in a decade-long insurgency that claimed 17,000 lives, to a mainstream political figure following the 2006 peace accord brokered by the United Nations. Despite serving his third term as prime minister, Dahal has yet to complete a full five-year tenure, indicative of the volatile nature of Nepali politics.
Since the abolition of the 239-year-old monarchy in 2008, Nepal has witnessed a revolving door of governments, totaling 13 administrations as it navigates the complexities of its republican governance. This ongoing flux underscores the challenges of governance and coalition-building in a nation striving for stability amidst geopolitical pressures and internal dynamics.
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