Arguments centre on if court can appoint Deuba prime minister
Chief justice asks whether it will be the right thing for the bench to pick prime minister as demanded by petitioners, as hearing on House dissolution continues.
LONDON, July 13: Eight candidates have been nominated to enter the race to be the leader of the Conservative Party and replace outgoing Boris Johnson as prime minister of the United Kingdom (UK), the party's backbench 1922 Committee said on Tuesday.
The eight contenders who successfully enlisted the required backing of at least 20 Conservative lawmakers are: Former Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak; Foreign Secretary Liz Truss; International Trade Minister Penny Mordaunt; backbench lawmaker Tom Tugendhat; Attorney General Suella Braverman; newly appointed Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi; former Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch; and former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
The first round of voting among Tory lawmakers will be held on Wednesday and only those contenders who receive at least 30 votes can enter the second ballot, which is to be held on Thursday, according to the rules set by the 1922 Committee, which runs the leadership contest.
The number of contenders will be whittled down to two through more rounds of secret ballot, before British parliamentarians break up for the summer recess on July 21.
The final two contenders will then go through a postal ballot of all the Conservative members, numbering around 200,000, over the summer and the winner will be announced on Sept.5, becoming the new Tory leader and the UK's next prime minister.
The Tory leadership race was triggered after Johnson was forced to bow to the inevitable on Thursday by an avalanche of resignations of cabinet ministers and other junior government officials in protest against his scandal-plagued leadership. Johnson continues to serve as caretaker prime minister until a new Tory leader succeeds him.
Johnson, who won a landslide victory in the general elections in 2019, lost support after he was caught in a string of scandals, including the Partygate scandal and the Chris Pincher scandal related to allegations of sexual misconduct by the former Conservative Party deputy chief whip.
JULY 8: Tom Tugendhat is the latest MP to throw his hat into the ring, joining Attorney General Suella Braverman and Brexiteer Steve Baker who have shown interest.
Mr Johnson plans to stay on as PM until a new successor is found by the autumn.
However, many colleagues and opposition politicians want him to leave now - but he has already filled cabinet jobs.
Mr Johnson resigned on Thursday, following two days of desperate attempts to cling onto power amid a flood of resignations.
Nearly 60 Conservative MPs have quit government roles in recent days at both senior and junior levels, raising doubts about the government's ability to function.
Speaking to his newly appointed cabinet on Thursday, Mr Johnson promised he would not use his remaining time in No 10 to make "major changes of direction".
A timetable for the Tory leadership race is due to be confirmed next week and the new prime minister is expected to be in position by September.
But unofficially, the contest is already under way. The chair of the foreign affairs committee Mr Tugendhat, launched his leadership bid by writing in the Daily Telegraph on Friday, promising tax cuts and "new energy and ideas" for government.
"I have served before - in the military, and now in Parliament. Now I hope to answer the call once again as prime minister," said the former soldier, who has been a prominent critic of Mr Johnson.
Attorney General Ms Braverman has already confirmed she will stand, while former Brexit minister Mr Baker said he was "seriously" considering running after being asked by people to do so.
Sajid Javid, the former health secretary, and Transport Secretary Grant Shapps - who both revolted against Mr Johnson - are also considering putting their hats into the ring, the BBC has been told.
Others tipped to run include Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, former Chancellor Rishi Sunak and ex-Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt.
More declarations are expected in the coming days - but some senior Tories have already said they will not be running, including former Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove, Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab and former Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
Brexit minister Jacob Rees-Mogg criticised Mr Sunak on Thursday, saying he was "not a successful chancellor" and "not alert to the inflationary problem".
Speaking on Channel 4 News, the Johnson loyalist said the PM had been an "exceptionally good leader" who had been brought down by some "relatively minor missteps that got taken out of all proportion".
Transport minister Robert Courts said Mr Shapps, who he works alongside, would be a "great choice" and also suggested Ben Wallace, the defence secretary.
"I think we need someone who's got experience, someone who is able to campaign... someone who's able to deliver," he told BBC Newsnight.
It may not surprise you to discover that Westminster is a postcode which doesn't suffer a deficit of ambition.
The wannabes will fight a popularity contest among Tory MPs in the next few weeks, and should two of them be left at the end of that process, Conservative Party members will get the final say over the summer.
Somewhere between 100,000 and 200,000 people will be charged with selecting the next head of our government on our behalf.
It is a safe bet the next prime minister will be a very different character to Boris Johnson. Given the manner and motivations behind his toppling, being seen to ooze integrity and revere truth are qualities all the candidates will aspire to illustrate.
But beyond that there will be an intriguing debate about what it means to a Conservative in 2022.
When a new leader assumes office, the political landscape will instantly shift.
Meanwhile, Conservative backbench MP and former cabinet minister Andrew Mitchell said: "We need a complete break from the Boris years."
Asked about what he would want in a new leader, he said someone with domestic and international experience and "someone who is patently moral and decent".
MP John Baron said he thought a new leader should focus on the cost of living crisis, levelling up and helping the most vulnerable in society.
It is important that "integrity" is at the heart of the government, he told the BBC.
Any candidate for the leadership race would need to secure the backing of Tory MPs, with the final two candidates then going to a ballot of Conservative members.
Some Tories are deeply unhappy that Mr Johnson is not quitting as PM immediately, with the former Prime Minister Sir John Major saying it would be "unwise" for him to stay until a replacement is chosen.
Conservative MP Justine Greening said it was time for Mr Johnson to go and while he remains in No 10 "it's harder for the party and the country to move on".
But Lord Vaizey who formerly served as a minister for David Cameron, said it was "fine" for the PM to continue "to act as caretaker".
Getting rid of a prime minister can lead to "dissatisfaction" with party members and voters who elected them, he told Newsnight.
The Labour Party has also threatened to try and unseat the PM immediately through a vote of no confidence, although this would need considerable support among Conservatives to succeed.
According to Downing Street, Mr Johnson told ministers at a cabinet meeting on Thursday that he would not seek to implement "major changes of direction" or take "major fiscal decisions" while a caretaker PM.
The prime minister's resignation followed a revolt by ministers over his leadership, which was sparked by the way he handled sexual misconduct allegations against former deputy chief whip Chris Pincher.
Initially he tried to replace ministers who had quit, until it became clear that he had lost the confidence of the Conservative Party.
In his resignation speech outside No 10 on Thursday, Mr Johnson said he had tried to stay on to deliver on his "incredible mandate" from the 2019 election.
He cited various achievements including Brexit and the Covid vaccine programme.
He said his departure was a result of the "herd instinct" at Westminster and it would be "painful" to not deliver on "so many ideas and projects".
Mr Johnson also spoke to President Zelensky of Ukraine, reassuring him that his replacement would remain as committed to the war-torn country as he was.
With inputs from BBC
On November 11, 2021, a total of 96 deputy superintendents of police (DSPs) were transferred. Despite the Nepal Police Regulations, 2014, stating that these transfers can only be done by the inspector general of police, that has not been the case as both the prime minister and the home minister have been involved in these transfers on a regular basis.
The post PM and home minister continue to interfere in Nepal Police transfers unlawfully appeared first on OnlineKhabar English News.
KATHMANDU, June 25: Senior advocate Mukti Pradhan has claimed that only the prime minister appointed in accordance with Article 76 (5) can dissolve the House of Representatives (HoR).
While taking part in the ongoing debate on the writ petitions filed against the dissolution of the HoR in the constitutional bench, on behalf of the writ petitioner, Pradhan claimed that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who was appoitned as per Article 76 (3), could not recommend to the president for the dissolution of the lower house of parliament.
"He [PM Oli] lost his capacity to stake claim to the prime ministerial position as per Article 76 (5) by the time he lost a vote of confidence" he said.
He also argued that the tasks performed by the president undoubtedly fall under the jurisdiction of the court and are the subjects to the judicial review.
“The response submitted from the Office of the President is not justifiable. As KP Sharma Oli and Sher Bahadur Deuba claimed for the new government as per Article 76 (5), the president's decision not to appoint either of them as prime minister is purely unconstitutional and immature.”'
Click here to read the news in detail.
KATHMANDU, May 25: KP Sharma Oli has made a unique 'record' by moving across all the articles of the constitution which are meant for the formation of the Council of Ministers, in the single tenure of the House of Representatives (HoR). For this, Oli has taken all possible measures. PM Oli, interpreting the constitution himself, is now steering ahead by flouting Article 76 (4) of the Constitution of Nepal.
Article 76 of the constitution mentions four different provisions for forming a government. First, government under the leader of a parliamentary party that commands majority in the House of Representatives (HoR) as the Prime Minister (Clause 1 and the second, government of a member of the House of Representatives who can command majority with the support of two or more parties representing in the HoR (Clause 2). Similarly, Clause 3 states that as the parliamentary party leader of the party which has the highest number of MPs in the HoRcan form a new government while Clause 5 states that the president shall appoint a member who presents a ground on which he or she can obtain a vote of confidence in parliament.
Prime Minister Oli has attempted to exercise all four provisions in order to take charge of the government. Oli, who was appointed as the prime minister as per Article 76 (3) on May 10, skipped the Article 76 (4) and also dissolved the lower house of parliament by exercising the power of the prime minister as mentioned in Clause 6. This is not the first time he has dissolved parliament. He had earlier dissolved the 275-member House of Representatives on December 20 last year which was, however, restored by February 23 order of the Supreme Court.
Oli, who was appointed as the Prime Minister on February 15,2018, had assumed the office as the chief executive of the country in accordance with Article 76, Clause 2. Clause 2 of Articlle 76 states that the president shall appoint a member of the House of Representatives who can command a majority with the support of two or more parties at the HoR as the prime minister in case no party has a clear majority in the House.
Following the unification of the CPN-UML and the CPN-Maoist Center to the Nepal Communist Party (NCP) on May 17, 2018, Oli was automatically transformed into the prime minister under Article 76 (1). The Constitutional Bench, during its verdict on the House dissolution case on February 23 also admitted this fact.
Article 76, Clause 1 of the Constitution provides for the appointment of the leader of the parliamentary party having a majority in the House of Representatives as the Prime Minister.
Although Oli was not sworn in under Clause 2, the essence of the Supreme Court's verdict was that he was the prime minister under Clause 1 following the merger deal between the UML and Maouist.
Even after the Supreme Court, through its March 7 order, invalidated the erstwhile ruling NCP and resurrected the UML and Maoist Center, Oli remained as the Prime Minister under Clause 1 for more than two months before he lost a trust vote in parliament on May 10.
Shortly after Oli lost the trust vote, President Bidya Devi Bhandari called upon the political parties for the formation of a new government under Clause 2 in the stipulated time frame of three days. As other parties failed to stake claim for the new government, Oli was again appointed the prime minister under Clause 3 which states that the President shall appoint the parliamentary party leader of the party which has the highest number of members in HoR as the prime minister if the government cannot be formed under clause 2.
The prime minister appointed under Clause 3 shall obtain a vote of confidence from the parliament no later than thirty days after the date of such appointment.
However, Prime Minister Oli did not seek a confidence vote and said he ‘had facilitated’ the process of formation of a new government under Clause 5.
Following the recommendation made by the Council of Ministers, President Bhandari on Thursday evening (May 20) called upon the members of parliament to stake claim for a new government formation, extending a deadline of 21 hours.
It is stated in the Article 76 (5) that the president shall appoint such a member as the prime minister who can present a ground on which he or she can obtain a vote of confidence in the HoR in case the PM appointed under Clause 3 fails to obtain a vote of confidence under Clause 4.
Nepali Congress (C) President, Sher Bahadur Deuba laid a claim for the new government formation as per Article 76 (5) to the president on May 21 (Friday). Deuba claimed to have the support of 149 lawmakers with him. PM Oli, who had earlier announced the facilitation for new government formation, also staked a claim for the new government as per Article 76 (5).
However, President Bhandari rejected both teht claims dissolved parliament, using the power of the prime minister under Clause 5.
Prime Minister Oli has set up a unique precedent in Nepal’s parliamentary history by exercising all the possible provisions for new government formation as mentioned in Article 76.
