Madhav Kumar Nepal collets majority support to form govt. (BREAKING NEWS)

Kathmandu, 17May: Majority support of 350 lawmakers was submitted to Speaker Subash Nemwang to appoint former CPN-UML General Secretary Madhav Kumar Nepal prime minister to succeed a Maoist-led government of Prime Minister Prachanda.
Parliament has 601 members.
Prachanda is on the way out after nearly nine months in office.
President Dr Ram Baran Yadav asked Prachanda to continue in office after he intervened and asked Army Chief Gen Rukmangud Katawal in office after dismissal by the Prachanda government nearly two weeks ago,
The president was only informed through a copy of the dismissal letter.
Lt Gen Kul Bahadur Khadka was appointed by the Prachanda government by just informing the president who appoints the army chief formally.
Khadka said Sunday he is acting army chief without exercising powers after receiving appointment letter from Maoist government creating a crisis described as a presidential and army coup by Maoists.
Twenty-two parties including MJF with 53 seats in parliament, asked Nemwang to start a process of forming a successor government Sunday after submitting signatures.
Chief Whip Surendra Pandey of CPN-UML asked Nemwang to start process the process.
MJF reached a point of split Sunday after leader of the parliamentary party Bijaya Gachedhar and a defector from the Nepali Congress
submitted 35 signatures to CPN-UML and the speaker supporting the candidature of Nepal after a parliamentary party meeting.
Chairman Upendra Yadav later lent support to the proposed government even as deputy leader Jayaprakash Gupta said a parliamentary party meeting wasn’t held Sunday.
Gupta said a formal meeting will be called Monday.
Dramatic developments followed the victory of a coalition led by Sonia Gandhi of Congress-I in India 24 hours earlier.
The Congress government engineered a ouster of 238-year-old monarchy with help of Nepali political parties.
”Nearly all but Maoists are outside government. I ask Maoists to join a national government,” CPN-UML Chairman Jhalanath Khanal said.
Maoists held non-violent anti-presidential demonstrations in the capital, Biratnagar, Nepalgunj and Dhangadi demanding a correction of the presidential action.
Prachanda addressed an overflowing crown of nearly 200,000 supporters at the Open Air Theatre amid fears of an outbreak of violence; New Road closed down out of fear.
“We won’t withdraw from the peace process. I ask other parties to promote national understanding.
“Conspirators comparing Maoists with LTTE in Sri Lanka and threatening to send Maoists to jungle won’t be spared by people. We fought for change .
“ From my experience as prime minister, those in Nepal Army, police Nepal’s bureaucracy are on behalf of the people and not feudals,”achanda told a cheering crowd.
He opposed presidential action.
Prachanda said Maoists won’t disrupt the parliament meetings to appoint a new prime minister.
Nnnn


29 injured a bomb explosion on Janakpur-Jayanagar railway (BREAKING NEWS)


Kathmandu, 17 May: Twenty-nine persons were injured, some seriously in a bomb explosion in a first class compartment of the Jayanagar-Janakpur railway first class compartment a 9.30 in the morning.
The train was moving to Janakpur from Jayanagar.
Nnnn

Shailendra Upadhaya attempting Everest at 80

Kathmandu, 17 May: Former Foreign Minister Shailendra Kumar Upadhaya is attempting to climb Mount Everest his spring at 80 years of age.
Upadhaya made the announcement Sunday.
He was also Nepal’s ambassador to the United Nations.
nnnn