Madhes Province Chief Minister Saroj Yadav has been consulting legal experts since early Tuesday morning after the Supreme Court issued a mandamus requiring him to secure a vote of confidence within 24 hours.
On Monday, the Supreme Court directed Yadav to obtain the vote by this evening in response to a writ petition filed by 73 provincial assembly members, who argued that his appointment was unconstitutional.
CPN–UML Madhes Province chief whip Harinarayan Mahato said the chief minister has been engaged in consultations since morning. He added that although no party meeting has been called, internal discussions are ongoing. A provincial assembly meeting has also not been convened.
Janamat Party chief whip Chandan Singh confirmed that the assembly has not been called and said resignation is the only option left for the chief minister. “He does not have the majority. We do not see any possibility other than resignation,” he said.
A UML provincial lawmaker also said that resignation appears to be the likely outcome.
The Supreme Court on Monday ordered that the current government remain unchanged but directed the chief minister to seek a vote of confidence within 24 hours. If he fails to secure the vote, the process of forming a new government will proceed under another constitutional provision.
Singh said that under Article 168(2) of the Constitution, a government should be formed with the support of two or more parties. “That is what the court has stated. We are discussing exactly that,” he added.
The court order stated: “Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav shall table a proposal for a vote of confidence in accordance with Article 168(4) of the Constitution of Nepal in the Madhes Province Assembly. If he secures the vote, the matter shall proceed accordingly. If he fails, necessary and appropriate steps shall be taken to form another government or appoint a chief minister under Article 168(2).”
Background, Political Crisis, and Numbers Required for Majority
Yadav was appointed chief minister on Kartik 23 as the leader of the largest party. After then–Province Chief Sumitra Subedi Bhandari administered the oath at a hotel, political controversy escalated in Madhes Province. According to the Constitution, the chief minister must secure a vote of confidence within 30 days.
However, after seven parties — Nepali Congress, CPN (Maoist Centre), CPN (Unified Socialist), Janamat Party, Loktantrik Samajbadi Party, Janata Samajbadi Party and others — filed a petition against the appointment, the political crisis deepened.
UML has been the most affected by the dispute. The party has already lost the province chief and the speaker. The federal government dismissed the province chief, and Speaker Ramchandra Mandal was removed by the provincial assembly. Now UML is on the verge of losing the chief minister as well.
Yadav needs 53 votes to win the trust vote. In the 107-member provincial assembly, 104 seats are currently filled. Of UML’s 25 lawmakers, only 24 are eligible to vote because one lawmaker remains suspended.
