Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has called a meeting of the Constitutional Council for 5 pm Thursday, a day after he agreed to withdraw the ordinance on the Constitutional Council Act which had created a political ruckus.

Chief Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi confirmed the meeting at 5pm.

“Today’s meeting of the Constitutional Council is the continuation of Tuesday's meeting,” Das Bairagi, who is also the member secretary of the Council, told the Post. “I don’t know more than that.”

Since the ordinance, which changed the provisions on convening a meeting, is yet to be withdrawn, the Council can sit in the presence of Oli, the chief justice and the National Assembly chair.

Other members are Speaker, leader of the opposition party and deputy Speaker.

As per new provisions, introduced through an ordinance Tuesday, the meeting does not require the presence of the Speaker and the leader of the opposition party as a simple majority is sufficient quorum. There is no deputy Speaker currently.

Bhanu Deuba, personal aide to Sher Bahadur Deuba, the leader of the main opposition, told the Post that he would not attend the meeting.

“Our party President will not attend any Council meeting unless the ordinance is withdrawn,” said Bhanu.

Deuba had refused to join Tuesday evening's Council meeting as well after Oli in the afternoon had issued the ordinance.

Oli’s move of issuing the ordinance has met with massive criticism from within his party and outside it, as experts on constitutional affairs described it as tantamount to committing a fraud on the constitution.

Oli then during his Nepal Communist Party’s Standing Committee on Wednesday agreed to withdraw the ordinance following his talks with the other party chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal.

It was expected that a Cabinet meeting on Thursday would recommend to the President the repealment of the ordinance.

However, according to a minister, a Cabinet meeting has been scheduled for 6pm.