Sushil Koirala set to become next prime minister of Nepal

Veteran Nepali Congress leader Sushil Koirala is set to become the next prime minister of Nepal with the support of the CPN-UML, ending months of political gridlock following last year’s elections.

The Parliament of Nepal will elect Koirala, 75, as prime minister tomorrow following the Constituent Assembly elections on November 19 that failed to throw up a clear winner.

The CPN-UML standing committee has decided to back Koirala for the top post after the party reached a six-point deal with the Nepali Congress (NC).

The deal was inked between the two top leaders of the parties, NC president Koirala and CPN-UML chairman Jhala Nath Khanal on Sunday.

The two largest parties in the Constituent Assembly, NC and CPN-UML, reached the agreement after several rounds of negotiations on the issue of power sharing, according to sources.

Koirala on Sunday filed his nomination for the post of prime minister which was proposed by party vice president Ram Chandra Poudyal and seconded by CPN-UML parliamentary party leader K P Sharma Oli.

Under the six-point agreement, the two parties have agreed to promulgate the new constitution within a year and to hold elections for the posts of president, vice president and chairman of the Constituent Assembly after it approves the new constitution, said NC spokesperson Dilendra Badu.

The agreement also mentioned about taking ownership of the past agreements of the dissolved 

Constituent Assembly regarding the drafting of the constitution.

After filing his nomination papers in Parliament, Koirala expressed commitment to promulgate the new constitution within a year through consensus among all political parties.