The CPN-UML has written to the Federal Parliament Secretariat, asking it to strip 14 lawmakers of the Madhav Nepal faction of their positions.

Earlier in the day, a meeting of the UML’s Parliamentary Party had decided to expel Nepal and other 13 as members of the Parliament, accusing them of being involved in splitting the party.

“The Parliamentary Party’s meeting held at the premises of parliament building New Baneshwor today endorsed an earlier decision of the party's Central Committee on August 9 to expel 14 members of the party as lawmakers,” said Sher Bahadur Tamang, a lawmaker and secretary of the party’s central secretariat. “We have also informed the Federal Parliament Secretariat and the Election Commission about the decision.”

Those removed as lawmakers are Nepal, Jeevan Ram Shrestha, Mukunda Neupane, Kalyani Khadka, Ram Kumari Jhakri, Laxmi Kumari Chaudhary, Nira Devi Jairu, Pushpa Kumari Karna, Sarala Yadav, Kalila Khatun, Birodh Khatiwada, Krishna Lal Maharjan, Bhawani Khapung and Metmani Chaudhary.

Those 14 lawmakers from the Nepal faction had played a crucial role in ousting UML chair KP Sharma Oli as prime minister and installing Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba instead.

After Deuba’s appointment as prime minister as per the July 12 Supreme Court order, the 14 lawmakers had also voted in favour of Deuba when he went for a floor test on July 18.

Tamang said the Federal Parliament Secretariat may take a few days to publish a notice regarding ouster of the 14 UML members as lawmakers, as there is no House session.

The House session was prorogued by the Deuba on Monday.

The Madhav Nepal faction had for long been struggling against Oli, charging the latter with trying to control the party and not being accommodative.

Though efforts were being made at the level of second-rung leaders for reconciliation between Oli and Nepal, nothing concrete had come out.

Nepal had sent Ghanashyam Bhusal to negotiate with Oli for the last time on Tuesday, but discussions failed to yield any results, according to sources in the Nepal faction.

The UML’s decision to oust the 14 lawmakers from the Nepal faction comes amid the government move of introducing an ordinance to amend the Political Parties Act-2017 to ease party split.

The Nepal faction cannot break away from the UML and form a new party as per the existing laws, as it does not control 40 percent members in the Central Committee and the Parliamentary Party.

The Deuba government has sent an ordinance changing the laws, reducing the number of Central Committee or Parliamentary Party members required for a party split.

Jeevan Ram Shrestha, a lawmaker close to Nepal, said the party’s decision is an indication that Oli is not in favour of party unity.

“We were still trying to remain in the party but this decision by Oli has pushed us further away,” said Shrestha. “It’s unfortunate, and this decision has further made Oli’s intentions clear that he is not for party unity.”