Madhav Kumar Nepal Replaces Prime Minister KP Oli As Nepal Communist Party Chief

Madhav Kumar Nepal has replaced Nepal Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli as chairman of the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), said party spokesperson Narayan Kaji Shrestha on Tuesday, adding that the party will be taking disciplinary action against KP Oli.

Speaking at a press briefing, the ruling party spokesperson said, "KP Oli replaced with Madhav Kumar Nepal as chairman of the Nepal Communist Party."

"315 Central Committee Members have voted in favour of Madhav Nepal," he said.

The party will also take disciplinary actions against KP Oli, the party spokesperson added.

This comes just two days after PM Oli had recommended the dissolution of the Parliament. Nepal President Bidhya Devi Bhandari ratified the proposal of Prime Minister Oli for the dissolution of Parliament and announced dates for an election.

In a live broadcast on state-owned Nepal Television, KP Oli asked everyone to be prepared for the elections on April 30 and May 10 next year.

The decision to dissolve the Lower House, an unprecedented move, had enraged the public as well as his party insiders.

12 writ petitions have been filed at the Supreme Court against KP Oli's move, which has widely been claimed to be unconstitutional.

KP Oli-led Nepal Communist Party weighed heavily in both the lower and upper houses with a huge majority secured during the 2017 general election. Protesting the latest move of KP Oli, a majority of ministers in his cabinet resigned en-masse on Sunday.

Hundreds of people took to the streets of Kathmandu on Sunday afternoon denouncing the latest move of Prime Minister KP Oli and an early election as a constitutional coup.

Protestors chanted slogans against KP Sharma Oli and President Bidhya Devi Bhandari for proposing and ratifying the proposal to dissolve parliament and call a fresh election for next year. They termed the move as a "Constitutional Coup" and demanded both the state and executive head of the nation not to go ahead.

KP Oli, who has been losing support within his own party, has been long criticised for making unilateral decisions while making key appointments and decisions. He has also been widely criticised for mishandling the pandemic and saving ministers accused of corruption.

Nepal, nestled between India and China, has seen 26 prime ministers in about three decades. The nation was expected to get out of the tumultuous situation after the election of 2017 in which KP Oli's party secured a majority of nearly two-thirds of votes.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)