Uddhav Thapa No Longer Koshi Chief Minister, SC Revokes Appointment

The Supreme Court has revoked the appointment of Uddhav Thapa, a leader from the Nepali Congress (NC), as the Chief Minister of Koshi province. The court’s full bench, comprising Justices Ishwore Prasad Khatiwada, Ananda Mohan Bhattarai, and Til Prasad Shrestha, ruled on Thursday that the signing by the speaker to form the government was unconstitutional.

The decision came after outgoing Chief Minister and CPN-UML parliamentary party leader for Koshi province, Hikmat Kumar Karki, filed a petition at the Supreme Court, challenging the appointment of Uddhav Thapa by Chief Minister Parshuram Khapung in an unconstitutional manner.

The Supreme Court has given a seven-day deadline for the formation of a new government in the province, which should ideally be a coalition of two or more parties. If such a coalition government is not possible, the court has instructed the formation of a new government under Article 168(3) of the Constitution.

Uddhav Thapa was appointed as the Chief Minister of Koshi province on July 6, with the support of 47 lawmakers from the ruling coalition, including 29 from the Nepali Congress, 13 from CPN (Maoist Center), four from CPN (Unified Socialist), and one from Janata Samajwadi Party. The opposition CPN-UML had raised objections against the government formation, arguing that the speaker’s support for the claim to the post of chief minister was against the Constitution.

In response to Karki’s petition, the court has issued an interim order to Uddhav Thapa on July 12, prohibiting him from making any decisions with a long-term impact until the case is decided.