Maoist chairman Prachanda on Tuesday claimed that fresh elections to Nepal’s Constituent Assembly could be held by May-end if political parties forge consensus on an election government led by the Chief Justice.
Addressing a rally in Kathmandu to mark the 18th anniversary of the ‘Peoples War’ to topple the monarchy, Prachanda said an election government under Supreme Court Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi would be the best alternative to hold fresh elections.
Prachanda claimed that it would not be against the spirit of the constitution to appoint the chief justice as the executive head.
The interim constitution provides for assigning chief justice or other justices for a certain period of time for any other task of national importance, he pointed out.
Last week, the UCPN chief had floated the idea of an election government led by the chief justice, at the concluding session of the Maoists’ largest meeting since the rebels toppled the 239-year-old monarchy in 2006 after a decade-long civil war.
Meanwhile, main opposition parties Nepali Congress and CPN-UML have rejected Prachanda’s proposal saying it would be unconstitutional to form a government led by the sitting chief justice.
‘Appointing the sitting Chief Justice to the post of Prime Minister may drag judiciary into controversy,’ CPN-UML general secretary Ishwor Pokharel said after a joint meeting of Nepali Congress and CPN-UML.
Appointing chief justice as the Prime Minister is against the principle of segregation of power, concluded the two main opposition parties.
Nepal plunged into political crisis after a 601-member interim legislature elected to draft a post-war Constitution was dissolved by Maoist Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai in May last year.
Addressing a rally in Kathmandu to mark the 18th anniversary of the ‘Peoples War’ to topple the monarchy, Prachanda said an election government under Supreme Court Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi would be the best alternative to hold fresh elections.
Prachanda claimed that it would not be against the spirit of the constitution to appoint the chief justice as the executive head.
The interim constitution provides for assigning chief justice or other justices for a certain period of time for any other task of national importance, he pointed out.
Last week, the UCPN chief had floated the idea of an election government led by the chief justice, at the concluding session of the Maoists’ largest meeting since the rebels toppled the 239-year-old monarchy in 2006 after a decade-long civil war.
Meanwhile, main opposition parties Nepali Congress and CPN-UML have rejected Prachanda’s proposal saying it would be unconstitutional to form a government led by the sitting chief justice.
‘Appointing the sitting Chief Justice to the post of Prime Minister may drag judiciary into controversy,’ CPN-UML general secretary Ishwor Pokharel said after a joint meeting of Nepali Congress and CPN-UML.
Appointing chief justice as the Prime Minister is against the principle of segregation of power, concluded the two main opposition parties.
Nepal plunged into political crisis after a 601-member interim legislature elected to draft a post-war Constitution was dissolved by Maoist Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai in May last year.