The Nepali Congress has said that the new KP Sharma Oli-led government will be formed in accordance with Article 76 (2) of the constitution.

The parliamentary party meeting of Nepali Congress held on Saturday clarified that it was the spirit of the agreement reached between the two largest parties on Monday. The meeting also endorsed the two-party deal. The party’s central work execution committee had endorsed the deal earlier on Wednesday.

As per the understanding between the Congress and the UML, Oli will lead a new ‘national consensus government’ for a year and a half. For the remaining term, Deuba will be the prime minister. Other details of the agreement, however, are still kept secret.

The Congress parliamentary party’s response comes at a time when leaders close to Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal have claimed that the new government formation process will be as per Article 76 (3) of the constitution. They argue that since the Dahal government was formed under Article 76 (2), the process would now move to the next article.

In the event that the government is formed as per the Article 76 (3), parliamentary party leader of the largest party in the House of Representatives will be appointed the prime minister. Such a scenario paves the way for Deuba to be the prime minister by virtue of being the parliamentary party leader of the largest party in the lower house.

However, some constitutional experts have suggested that Article 76 (2) may still be applicable in forming the new government.

According to Maoist leaders, Prime Minister Dahal does not want Oli to become the next prime minister as per Article 76 (2) because he thinks that Oli has deceived him repeatedly. So he is continuously instigating some Congress leaders to go for Article 76 (3) to form the government as per the deal. Dahal has also given the assurance to some Nepali Congress leaders that if Nepali Congress dares to lead the new government as per 76 (3), he and some other parties will come and support the bid, leaders privy to the developments say.

Amid this, Dahal on Saturday met with Nepali Congress leader Shekhar Koirala to discuss the new political dynamics.

Koirala has been saying he is not sure which constitutional article will be invoked to form the new government after the prime minister goes for a floor test and fails to garner the majority votes, leaders say.

Koirala and leaders from his faction who were advocating for the political alliance between Nepali Congress and UML have been irked as they feel they were totally sidelined in the new power-sharing deal between Deuba and Oli.

Deuba and Koirala lead rival factions inside the Nepali Congress. Deuba had defeated Koirala when they contested for the post of party president in 2021.

In Saturday’s meeting, Koirala told Dahal that it has become too late to form the government under the leadership of Nepali Congress. Koirala also urged Dahal to step down because his government had already been reduced to the minority and it was unlikely to receive the vote of confidence.

Koirala was advocating for an alliance between the Nepali Congress and UML, arguing that only an alliance between these two parties can pull the country out of the morass of the current problems, a Nepali Congress leader said. “But he was totally ignored in the entire negotiation process between Deuba and Oli,” the leader said.

Not only Koirala, the party’s general secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa and other leaders also expressed their discontent because they were not kept in the loop while the deal was struck. That is why Dahal took the opportunity to reach out to Koirala, a Nepali Congress leader said.

“As per the agreement with UML, the new government under Oli's leadership will be formed according to Article 76 (2),” said Congress Chief Whip Ramesh Lekhak. Prime Minister Dahal has decided to go for a floor test on July 12.

“We are committed to the agreement reached with the UML, so the new government will be formed as per article 76 (2),” Lekhak said. “The incumbent prime minister is taking a vote of confidence on July 12 and we have decided to vote against him.”

In the 275-strong House of Representatives, Dahal needs the backing of 138 to win the trust vote but he has only 73 lawmakers—32 from the CPN (Maoist Centre), 21 from the Rastriya Swatantra Party and 10 from the CPN (Unified Socialist)—in his support. The Janamat Party, with six members, and the Nagarik Unmukti Party, with four lawmakers, also support him.

On Monday night, Deuba and Oli also reached a power-sharing arrangement, proposed amendments to the constitution by reviewing the electoral system, including proportional representation, changing national assembly compositions, and discussed the size of provincial assemblies.

As per the preliminary understanding of the power-sharing deal, the Congress will lead 10 ministries, including home, and the UML nine, including finance. Likewise, the Congress and the UML will lead three provincial governments each, with the government in Madhesh to be led by the CK Raut-led Janamat Party.