Khagaraj Adhikari Appointed Chief Minister of Gandaki Province

Khagaraj Adhikari, the parliamentary party leader for CPN (UML) in the Gandaki Province Assembly, has been appointed as the Chief Minister following a successful claim presented earlier today.

Adhikari, who garnered support from 31 Provincial Assembly members, presented his claim before Province Chief Dilli Raj Bhatta. The support for Adhikari’s claim includes 22 members from UML, eight from CPN (Maoist Centre), and one independent member, fulfilling the requirement of at least 30 members’ confidence out of the 60-member Gandaki PA.

The vacancy for Chief Minister arose after the resignation of Surendra Raj Pandey, who tendered his resignation last Thursday amid political instability. Pandey, representing the Nepali Congress, resigned after it became evident that he wouldn’t secure a vote of confidence due to the withdrawal of support from Maoist Centre, his erstwhile coalition partner.

With Adhikari’s appointment, the coalition partners have swiftly acted within the deadline set by the Province Chief, calling on political parties to stake their claims for the Chief Minister’s post by April 9.

However, the decision-making process in forming the new government might face a hurdle as the Rastriya Prajantra Party (RPP), holding two seats in Gandaki, remains undecided on whether to support the new government or not.