Dramatic events took place within the Sudurpaschim Congress Parliamentary Party on Tuesday. A no-confidence motion was filed against Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah in the morning to remove him from the leadership of the Congress Parliamentary Party. However, less than 4 hours later, one of the MPs who signed the no-confidence motion withdrew it, and the game within the party to change its own Chief Minister/government took a new turn. After MP Dammari Mahara announced that he had withdrawn his signature, Chief Minister Shah's position was saved for the time being.

MPs supporting President Gagan Thapa in the Congress Parliamentary Party had filed a no-confidence motion against Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah, who is the party leader. Shah is supported by former President Sher Bahadur Deuba. Nine members of the 18-member Congress Parliamentary Party had signed the no-confidence motion. The signatories include Whip Geeta Chaudhary, MPs Man Bahadur Rawal, Diwan Singh Bista, Padam Bahadur Shahi, Dammari Mahara, Tulsi Devkota, Bel Bahadur Rana Magar, Lalita Sunar and Junakumari Dani. It is mentioned that the no-confidence motion was registered on Jestha 20 under the coordination of senior member Man Bahadur Rawal.

MP Diwan Singh Bista, who led the motion, had claimed that out of the total number of 18 MPs in the Congress, only 9 would be a majority as MP Prakash Bahadur Deuba has been in the US for a month and will not return immediately.

In the afternoon, MP Dammari Mahara, who signed the motion, held a press conference at the Chief Minister's Office and announced that she had withdrawn her signature. She said, "I disagreed with the government's actions, but I decided to withdraw my signature as I felt that my decision to sign would further affect unity at a time when there was internal turmoil in the party."

Earlier, only 1 MP out of 18 here was in favor of a special general convention. Apart from that, all the former presidents were MPs from the Deuba group. MPs say that the signatories have changed now.

Therefore, the dispute in the Sudurpaschim Congress

Leaders and activists allege that the main root of the trouble in the Sudurpaschim Congress is the clash of those who want to become ministers. Also, the conflict has increased because the Congress has been divided into two groups from the center. MPs say that since the past, there has been a lobbying for the current ministers from the Congress in the government to be changed and for new ones to be given opportunities.

Congress changing the Chief Minister of the Far West

A provincial meeting was organized on Baisakh 26 with the participation of President Gagan Thapa. However, in retaliation for that, on Jestha 10, pro-Deuba leaders organized a provincial meeting in Dhangadhi as a show of strength. Although Chief Minister Shah participated in both the meetings, he was heard loudly in the Deuba group's meeting. During his speech at the meeting attended by the President, Shah emphasized that the honor of former President Deuba should be maintained and that President Thapa had a key role in uniting the Congress. However, at the meeting of the Deuba group, he gave a speech that any attack on the dignity of former President Deuba would not be tolerated. After that, Congress workers say that the alliance against Chief Minister Shah is growing.

Earlier, Chief Minister Shah had met UML President KP Sharma Oli and Congress President Thapa in Kathmandu amid discussions about reshuffling the provincial government. After that meeting, the discussions about reshuffling the government had subsided somewhat. According to sources close to Shah, during the meeting when President Thapa came to Dhangadhi, he inquired about the preparations for a leadership change, but President Thapa informed him that no decision had been made in that regard immediately.  

After MP Mahara said that he had withdrawn his signature, the leaders who were campaigning to change the Chief Minister have been disappointed. However, an MP said that the effort will continue. 

MP Padam Bahadur Shahi said that even if someone announces that he has withdrawn it in the meantime, the vote will be decided in the meeting as the no-confidence motion has already been registered.  ‘We have to go through the process now according to the party statute,’ he said.