By TRN Online, Kathmandu, May 21: President Bidya Devi Bhandari has said that the claims submitted by Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba separately for the formation of a new majority government were insufficient to appoint a new Prime Minister.

Following President Bhandari's call on the members of the House of Representatives (HoR) to form a new government on Thursday, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and President of Nepali Congress (NC) Sher Bahadur Deuba on Friday submitted their claims to form a new majority government on Friday afternoon.

Issuing a press statement on Friday night, Keshav Prasad Ghimire, assistant spokesperson at the  President's Office, said, "Prime Minister cannot be appointed as no concrete basis has been seen in the claims submitted by HoR members Oli and Deuba for obtaining the vote of confidence at the parliament as per Article 76 (5) of the Constitution."

A total of 153 HoR members including 121 of CPN-UML and 32 of Janata Samajwadi Party (Nepal) had supported Prime Minister Oli's claim to majority government as per Article 76 (5) and (6). According to the press statement issued by the President's office, it has been said that JSP Chairman Mahanta Thakur and leader Rajendra Mahato had signed in the claim.

"Although Prime Minister Oli has said that 153 parliamentarians were in his support, 26 lawmakers from CPN-UML and 12 from JSP have signed in the claim submitted by Deuba," read the statement.

On the other hand, President of the main opposition Deuba had submitted his claim to the majority government with the support of 149 parliamentarians including 61 from NC, 49 from NCP (Maoist Centre), 26 from CPN-UML, 12 from JSP, and one from Rashtriya Janamorcha.

Assistant Spokesperson Ghimire informed that the office of the President received a separate notice from CPN-UML Chairman Oli and JSP Chairman Thakur and leader Mahato that the signatures of the CPN-UML and JSP lawmakers on opposition's claim would invalid as the respective parties would take disciplinary action against them suspend their party and HoR membership.

"Thus, as the signatures in the claims submitted by Oli and Deuba to form an alternative government with majority overlapped and the political parties also stated that the signature of their party members supporting the opposition would be invalid, both the claims are insufficient as per Article 89 (e) and Chapter 6 of the Act relating to Political Parties, 2073," said Ghimire.