Nepal's ruling coalition loses majority in Parliament

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Nepal's ruling coalition loses majority in Parliament

KATHMANDU: Nepal's ruling coalition lost its majority in Parliament, results from last month's election showed on Wednesday December 7 in a rebuke by voters to the Himalayan republic's ageing political elite.

The election commission said that the Nepali Congress of the current Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba, 76, emerged as the largest party, but his five-party ruling alliance fell short of a majority with 136 seats in the 275-member parliament.

Our party has emerged as the largest party. It's not the result we expect, and it's not in line with our expectations. We had expected more, Prakash Sharan Mahat, a Nepali Congress spokesman, told AFP.

Congress is going to have to seek support from some of the 34 independent and minor party candidates who entered the assembly for the first time in a wave of voter discontent.

A long-time campaigner against corruption, Rabi Lamichhane, 48, is one of the most prominent people who will play a key role in any negotiations.

The National Independent Party, contesting its first election, won 20 seats and became the fourth-largest in the assembly.

We will meet the shortfall for the majority by bringing other parties into the fold. Some of them have shown their interest in a partnership with the coalition, Mahat said.

The election on November 20 was the second held under the current constitution, which ushered in a new political order after the conclusion of Nepal's traumatic Maoist insurgency.

A decade-old civil war ended in 2006, which had claimed more than 17,000 lives and prompted the abolition of the monarchy, bringing former rebels into the government fold.

Since then, the ex-guerrillas have alternated in power with another communist party and Congress in various coalitions.

Deuba has served as prime minister five times while the two other main party leaders, aged 70 and 67, have both held the office twice.

This revolving door of prime ministers - most serving less than a year - and a culture of parliamentary horse trading has frustrated the public at a time when many households are struggling with rising living costs.

Nepal's economy is still in the doldrums from the Pandemic, which devastated the vital tourism industry and dried up remittances from the huge number of Nepalis working abroad.

Many voters supported new candidates who sprang up in response to public discontent with established politicians in the country of 29 million people.

With Deuba likely to return as prime minister, some are skeptical about the prospects for substantive change.

It looks like this is going to be a replay of the same drama, Uttam Niraula, a 30-year-old tourism entrepreneur, told AFP.