Madhesh Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav lost his position on Wednesday, 17 months into his appointment, after failing to secure a vote of confidence during a floor test in the provincial assembly.

A meeting of the provincial assembly rejected the motion tabled by the chief minister seeking the assembly’s trust.

Assembly Speaker Ramchandra Mandal announced that of the 103 members present, 50 members of the assembly voted in favour of his motion while 53 voted against.

In the 107-strong Madhesh assembly, the support of 54 assembly members is required for a simple majority.

The federal coalition of the Maoist Centre, the CPN-UML and the Janamat Party, among others, is set to stake claim to a new government in the province.

CPN (Maoist Centre) leader Yuvaraj Bhattarai claimed that although 53 assembly members voted against Yadav on Wednesday, the new coalition has 55 votes in the assembly and its candidate will swiftly win the chief ministership.

“Assembly members representing the Nagarik Unmukti Party and Nepal Sanghiya Samajbadi Party were absent during the trust vote, but they are with us,” Bhattarai told the Post. The two parties each have an assembly member.

With 25 members, the CPN-UML is the largest party in Madhesh provincial assembly, while the Congress is second-largest with 22 members. Likewise, the JSP-Nepal has 19, the Janamat Party 13, the Loktantrik Samajbadi Party Nepal 9, the CPN (Maoist Centre) 9, the CPN (Unified Socialist) 7 and the Nepal Sanghiya Samajbadi Party, the Nagarik Unmukti Party and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party one each.

Earlier, leaders from the CPN-UML, the CPN (Maoist Centre), and the CPN (Unified Socialist) had reportedly agreed to form the provincial government in Madhesh under the leadership of CK Raut-led Janamat party’s provincial assembly leader.

On May 30, Janamat Party chair Raut had announced that the federal coalition members including Mahantha Thakur-led Loktantrik Samajbadi Party Nepal would support his party to form the government in Madhesh. However, leaders from Thakur’s party and the Unified Socialist had said they have yet to make an official decision.

Yadav, provincial assembly leader of the Janata Samajbadi Party-Nepal, was appointed the chief minister on January 11, 2023.

The Yadav-led provincial government lost the majority after the CPN-UML and the CPN (Maoist Centre) withdrew their support on May 12.

The chief minister went for the floor test as per the mandatory provision of the constitution. This provision requires a chief minister to undergo a floor test within 30 days if the party the chief minister represents splits or a coalition partner withdraws its support.

Upendra Yadav’s parties, including the current JSP-Nepal, had been in power in Madhesh Province for nearly seven consecutive years. Yadav formed several parties over the past seven years through splits or mergers.

The latest split of Yadav’s JSP-Nepal happened on May 5, when its federal chair Ashok Rai, backed by several senior leaders, launched a new Janata Samajbadi Party. The Election Commission recognised the new party on May 6, compelling Chief Minister Yadav to undergo a floor test as per Article 188 (2) of the Constitution.

“If the political party which the Chief Minister represents is divided or a political party in coalition Government withdraws its support, the Chief Minister shall table a resolution in the State Assembly for a vote of confidence within thirty days,” reads the Article of the Constitution.

Earlier, Chief Minister Yadav had planned to defer the trust vote. He had requested the assembly to reschedule the vote for Monday next week, citing his poor health.

However, he later agreed to face the assembly due to fear of ‘automatically’ losing the position. Leaders from rival parties had claimed that Yadav would lose the position based on the date of the split of the JSP-Nepal if he refused to undergo a floor test.

There were also legal questions over the requirement for floor test as the Supreme Court, acting on a petition by Upendra Yadav, has ordered the election body to freeze the registration of the Ashok Rai-led party, until a final verdict.

On Wednesday evening, Province Head Sumitra Bhandari invited parties for government formation in accordance with Article 168(2) of the Constitution. The parties have until 10 am Friday to submit their claims. The provision states that in cases where no party has a clear majority in the assembly under clause(1), the Province Head shall appoint as the chief minister a member of the assembly who can command a majority with the support of two or more parties representing the provincial assembly.

The new chief minister will be required to secure the confidence of the provincial assembly within 30 days of appointment.

With Wednesday’s trust vote, Upendra Yadav’s party has been ousted from power six and a half years after the first provincial assembly elections. Previously, Yadav’s aide Lal Babu Raut served a full five-year term as chief minister of the province.