Set to lose Friday’s trust vote, Prachanda battles till the end to prevent Oli’s return as PM

But, in a bid to ensure that his rival does not take the helm of the country, the chief of the Maoist Centre party is learnt to have asked NC chief Sher Bahadur Deuba to not work with Oli.

A highly-placed source in the government said Prachanda attempted to approach Deuba over the phone to consider an offer that Maoist Centre was willing to back him as Prime Minister. The NC chief, however, said that he had already signed a deal with the CPN-UML, the source said.

Sources said Prachanda also met with senior NC leader Shekhar Koirala and other parliamentarians to keep Oli out of power.

The withdrawal of support by the CPN-UML limited Prachanda’s options, forcing him to choose between quitting right away and facing a confidence vote within a month.

Prachanda, who chose the latter, has also been using Constitutional provisions to prevent Oli’s return as PM. He has been insisting that Article 76(3) of Nepal’s Constitution, and not Article 76(2), should govern the process of electing his successor.

While Article 76(2) provides for the choice of a leader of any party who can command the support of two or more parties and prove a majority within 30 days, Article 76(3) makes it mandatory for the leader of the largest party to be invited to form government.

Thus, if Article 76(3) is invoked, NC leader Deuba with 89 members in parliament — 12 more than UML — will automatically become the Prime Minister.

Govinda Acharya, press advisor to the PM, said: “Although the Prime Minister has not solicited any legal opinion at the moment, his party believes that once the current government that was elected under Article 76(2) is defeated in the House, then the automatic way forward will be exercising article 76(3).”

Interestingly, the Maoist Centre is using the same public stance that Oli took in a similar situation to stop Prachanda’s ascent as PM.