National 1 (Spotlight Weekly)

A New Deadlock

Efforts by five mainstream political parties to convene a meeting of the members of the dissolved House of Representatives will invite a major constitutional crisis

By KESHAB POUDEL

With the dissolution of the House of Representatives and the dismissal of the Sher Bahadur Deuba government, House of Representatives Speaker Taranath Ranabhat and Deputy Speaker Chitra Lekha Yadav are the only two constitutionally recognized elected representatives in the country today. Following the call by five major political parties to convene a meeting of members of the dissolved house, the future of these two people has been thrown into uncertainty.

"If the speaker calls a meeting of members of the dissolved House of Representatives, it will inevitably encourage the King to exercise Article 127 of the constitution to remove him," said a political analyst. "Such a move will benefit forces that do not want to see elected representatives in the country."

Ranabhat : Walking in a tight rope

What prompted the leaders of the five political parties to commit such an unconstitutional step? If the speaker and his deputy were dismissed, the possibility of the revival of House of Representatives - one of the two demands of their ongoing agitation - would be foreclosed.

The speaker and deputy speaker of the House of Representatives are neither appointed through any Royal proclamation nor the decision of political parties. Both remain in their posts because of constitutional guarantees.

According to Article 51.4 (a) of the constitution, the office of the speaker and deputy speaker shall become vacant in the following circumstances: if he/she ceases to be a member of the House of Representatives: provided that, after the dissolution of the House of Representatives, the speaker and deputy speaker shall continue in office until the date of the filing of nominations for election to the House of Representatives or if he/she
submits a written resignation or if a resolution is passed by a majority of two-thirds of the total number of members in the† House of Representatives to the effect that his/her conduct is not compatible with his/her position.

Ranabhat and Yadav will remain in their positions until new elections for the House of Representatives are held in accordance with the constitution. It is constitutionally impossible to sack them. The easiest way to vacate those positions is to involve them in a constitutional crisis. Octogenarian former prime minister Girija Prasad Koirala, who is championing the cause of restoring the rights of the people, seems to have received a good suggestion from his new ally, CPN-UML general secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal.

As they have repeatedly shown over the last 13 years, Nepal's communist parties have no affection for parliamentary practices.

The recommendation of Koirala and Nepal to Speaker Ranabhat to summon a meeting of the house will definitely boomerang on their avowed commitment to put the constitutional process back on track.

Moreover, Koirala is challenging at the Supreme Court the decision of the Commission of Investigation of Abuse of Authority's summons to him as legally flawed. His decision to call a meeting of members of the House of Representatives, although political, would weaken his case.

Article 44 of the constitution says there shall be legislature, to be called the parliament which shall consist of His Majesty and two Houses, namely the House of Representatives and the National Assembly. Article 53(1) gives King the power to summon the House of Representatives.

"Five political parties have already asked Speaker Ranabhat to call a meeting of members of dissolved House of Representatives. If the speaker calls the meeting, we are ready to go anywhere to take part," said UML general secretary Nepal.

The decisions of such a meeting will have consequences that go beyond the removal of the speaker and his deputy. It will provoke a major constitutional crisis, the consequences of which cannot be fully comprehended now.

Speaker of the House of Representatives is symbolizing the continuity of the parliament. After dissolution of the House of Representatives, all other members lose the privilege but speaker retains it until the elections. This is because speaker represents the continuity of the parliament.

Parliament consists of King House of Representatives and National Assembly. As long as speaker and King is there, the House of Representatives remains alive. If the speaker of the House of Representatives was suspended, the demand of revival of House of Representatives would lose the significance. If Congress wants to go for revolution, I don't have to say anything. If they want to revive the house, they must not disturb the position of speaker.