Nepal Election 2082: Two Options for Prime Minister Appointment, Here is the Process to Form a New Government
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Even after the completion of the proportional vote count, forming a new government is expected to take more than a week.
The President’s Office has stated that it will call for government formation only after receiving the final election result report from the Election Commission. Meanwhile, an assistant spokesperson from the Commission estimates that the report could take about one more week to be completed.
“After the Commission submits the report, there are two options: to convene parliament and follow parliamentary procedures or to appoint the Prime Minister beforehand,” said Assistant Spokesperson Kul Bahadur GC of the Election Commission. “The decision on which process to follow lies with them; once the report is submitted, our work is finished.”
Pratibha Rawal, co-spokesperson of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (Raswapa), affirmed that the party is clear on senior leader Balendra Shah (Balen) becoming Prime Minister but procedural aspects are yet to be finalized.
According to the current vote count, the party has secured a clear majority, having won 125 seats directly and leading in the proportional representation vote tally.
“There is no disagreement among us that Balen Shah will be Prime Minister, because this has already been agreed upon,” she said when asked about the process for informing the President’s Office or Parliament Secretariat regarding the prime ministerial nominee, “but discussions within the party on this matter have not been concluded yet.”
Shah is a senior leader of Raswapa. Before the parliamentary elections, a seven-point agreement between two parties was made public, stipulating that Shah would become parliamentary party leader and future Prime Minister while Ravi Lamichhane would remain the party’s central chairman.
Next Steps in the Process
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According to Election Commission officials, since the final proportional vote count remains pending, it will likely take nearly a week to submit the complete report to the President.
“We are working to finalize the seat allocation for parties under the proportional representation system as quickly as possible,” Assistant Spokesperson GC said. “Once finalized, parties are given some time to select their proportional candidates. Only after that will the final results and report be prepared. This entire process may take about a week.”
The President’s Office spokesperson, Ritesh Kumar Shakya, stated that the government formation call will be made only after receiving this report.
“Upon receiving the report, the President will invite the formation of government as per Article 76(1) of the Constitution,” he said.
This clause states that the President appoints the leader of the parliamentary party who commands a majority in the House of Representatives as Prime Minister and that a Council of Ministers shall be formed under them.
Subclause 8 of the same article mentions that the appointment process must be completed within 35 days from the date of the final election result or vacancy of the Prime Minister’s office.
Should Parliament Meet First or Should the Prime Minister Be Appointed First?
There is a divergence of opinion among experts regarding whether members of parliament should be sworn in before the Prime Minister’s appointment or whether the Prime Minister can be appointed prior to the first parliamentary session, especially in the case of a clear majority.
Some argue that the Prime Minister’s appointment should happen only after MPs take the oath, while others maintain that in a case of clear majority, the President can appoint the Prime Minister even before the parliament convenes.
Padma Prasad Pandey, Secretary General of the Federal Parliament, noted that the law does not clearly specify this and that both practices have been observed.
“Whether the parliament sits first to form the government or the government is formed before parliament sits depends on the main party’s decision. The law is unclear on what must be done,” he said.
Usually, experts say, the President appoints the Prime Minister only after the party leader has been selected.
“However, KP Oli started the government once as party leader before even being appointed leader of the parliamentary party,” said Manohar Bhattarai, former Secretary General of the Parliamentary Secretariat.
According to experts, this was first practiced after the 2074 election when the alliance of the CPN-UML and CPN-Maoist Center secured a large majority.
“At that time, no objections were raised and it was accepted,” he added.
However, Bhattarai considers the practice inappropriate.
“Although the law does not clearly state it, this is a parliamentary tradition. Such traditions are recognized as valid rules and practices. Hence, breaking them is unacceptable.”
He added that the party winning the majority should not only select its parliamentary leader but also inform the house about it.
“The right to form a government lies with the majority party but it cannot bypass procedures and just declare ‘I am here.’ The election process must complete before the report is sent to the President’s Office. It is appropriate for the President to call only after the oath-taking. There is no need to rush,” said Bhattarai.
On the other hand, Secretary General Pandey holds a different view.
“The requirement to take the oath is simply a mandatory condition before the parliamentary session begins,” he explained.
Constitutionalist Purnman Shakya also recognizes both of Nepal’s processes as valid.
“No new interpretation has been made by the Supreme Court as there has not been a challenge, so both procedures are accepted currently,” he said. “Once the majority party’s MPs gather and declare their parliamentary leader, the President faces no obstacle constitutionally to appoint that person as Prime Minister. In a clear majority, the Prime Minister’s appointment may not require a parliamentary session beforehand.”
“After appointing the new Prime Minister, they are sworn in, the new government forms, and the old government dissolves. Then, on the Prime Minister’s recommendation, the President can call a new parliamentary session.”
Preparation by Raswapa
Co-spokesperson Rawal from Raswapa mentioned that once the proportional vote count is announced, prioritizing finalizing the names of their proportional candidates will begin, followed by quickly entering the Prime Minister appointment process.
“Discussions on that have not yet concluded but are expected to finish tomorrow or very soon,” she added.
