On Falgun 6th, in Janakpur Dham, the Nepali Congress (NC) has prepared to retract its support for the Madhesh government. Today, Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav is scheduled to take a vote of confidence, and the NC has begun preparations to withdraw its support.
A meeting of the Provincial Assembly is scheduled for 2 p.m. to take the vote of confidence. Before that, the NC has called for a parliamentary party meeting at noon. NC parliamentary party leader Saroj Kumar Yadav stated that the decision to withdraw support could be made if satisfaction with the government's performance is not achieved.
"The government's performance has not been satisfactory. The opposition has also been emboldened by giving confidence to such a government. Therefore, a decision to withdraw support could be made from today's party meeting," said Yadav. Earlier, on February 9, the Janamat Party withdrew its support from the Madhesh government, prompting Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav to seek a vote of confidence.
The Janamat Party had urged NC to play the role of the main opposition party by giving confidence to the government. Yadav, the Chief Minister, has sought a vote of confidence in the opposition bench twice before.
After pressure from the Janamat Party in the opposition bench, the NC has begun preparations to withdraw support. A member of the Provincial Assembly from the NC said, "If the NC does not withdraw support from the government today, the position of the main opposition party will be lost. Therefore, it is necessary to withdraw support. A decision to withdraw support will be made in the meeting scheduled for 12 o'clock."
The NC's decision to withdraw support from the government and the division of votes by the Chief Minister have put the NC in opposition, according to their statement. In the Madhesh Provincial Assembly, out of 107 lawmakers, NC has the highest number with 24, followed by Congress with 22, Janata Socialist Party with 19, Janamat with 13, NCP Maoist Center with 9, Losap with 9, and Unified Socialist with 7 lawmakers. There are also independent members from the Civil Liberty Party, RPP, and a single independent lawmaker.
Janamat's secretary for public opinion, BP Sah, said that the party would not give a vote of confidence to the government.