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Kathmandu,Thursday February 17, 2000 Fagun 05, 2056.
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Govt in for crisis NC lawmakers for change of leader
By a Post Reporter
KATHMANDU, Feb 16 - Rebelling lawmakers of
the governing Nepali Congress (NC) party today filed a petition at the NC parliamentary
party office seeking Prime Minister Krishna Prasad Bhattarai’s removal from office.
The petition was signed by 58 NC lawmakers
expressing "no- confidence" on the parliamentary party leader for his poor
performance as the prime minister of the country.
Party regulations require the parliamentary
party secretary to call the meeting within 15 days from the date the petition signed by at
least a fourth of the total members is registered. NC has 137 members in the two Houses of
Parliament.
"The prime minister has failed to show
any leadership and has remained to be a weak leader ... his government has not done any
progress," said NC parliamentarian Suresh Malla, who is leading the pack of rebels.
Prime Minister Bhattarai, who is nursing a
bad back at his official residence in Baluwatar, could not be reached for comments. But
his press advisor Kishore Nepal said the premier was not unduly worried.
"He has taken it as a natural
matter," Bhattarai’s press advisor Nepal said. "He is not unduly
concerned."
The signatories on the petion will now have
to be verified by calling each of the lawmakers before the date for the meeting is set.
Parliamentary Party Secretary Benup Raj
Prasai said he would have to first consult with party President Girija Prasad Koirala
before announcing the date. Either way, the meeting and the ouster will take place before
parliament begins its winter session on March 1.
Malla said they were not sure who they will
choose as the next parliamentary party leader but said, "We are confident that our
choice will be based on consensus and not just agreeable to one side or the other."
Asked why only 58 members had signed and if
they had enough votes to get their motion through, he said the signatures on the petition
were just to meet the criteria but the support was much larger than that.
Both Bhattarai and Koirala had reached an
agreement nearly two months back in which Bhattarai had agreed to step down immediately
after the winter session of parliament citing health reasons to defuse the situation that
developed with NC lawmakers rebelling against him and beginning a signature campaign.
The rebelling members did not officially file
the petition earlier after the agreement was reached between the two top leaders but when
the prime minister made last minute efforts by appointing Ram Chandra Poudel as the deputy
prime minister to save his position early this month, the rebels accused him of going back
on his promise of a peaceful exit.
Immediately after Poudel was appointed,
Koirala’s close associates said the effort was not going to pay off and warned that a
move would be made in the days that followed.
Since Bhattarai was appointed prime minster
in May last year after NC won the general elections, the gap between the two leaders had
been widening with the party blaming the government of going against its directives.
Both NC members and the opposition have
voiced concern over the attitude and performance of the Bhattarai government. His
ministers have been accused of indulging in corruption and unethical behaviour.
Minister for Housing and Physical Planning
Bal Bahadur K.C. had broken into the house of a married woman, physically abused her and
threatened her. Bhattarai refused to sack K.C. despite pleas from NC members including
Koirala himself.
The Minister for Youth, Sports and Culture
Sharat Singh Bhandari had been accused of pocketing hefty commissions while awarding
contracts during the South Asian Games held last year. He too was spared by Bhattarai.
Other members in the cabinet have been
accused of indulging in corruption while the government as a whole has also been accused
of failing to control the Maoist insurgents who have targeted NC workers and supporters in
the bloody campaign for a republican state.
Earlier this month, the 76-year-old prime
minister was confined to bed for nearly two weeks due to, what his aides said, was back
problem. He is still nursing his back.
Meanwhile, late on Wednesday, sources inside
the NC indicated that about a dozen ministers in Bhattarai’s cabinet were preparing
to tender their resignations in support of the petition.
The move to oust Bhattarai comes when his
most ardent supporter, former prime minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, is away from the country
touring Australia. He is due in Kathmandu only next week. It is said that Deuba’s
manouevering has thus far propped up the Bhattarai government.
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