KATHMANDU: CPN-UML’s Khanal-Nepal faction leader and lawmaker Ram Kumari Jhakri has said that their faction will give a vote of confidence to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba for the sake of parliament and parliamentary system.

Answering to the media’s query whether her group would abide by the party’s standing committee meeting to stand against PM Deuba, lawmaker Jhakri said on Sunday that Khanal-Nepal faction of the party has been fighting to ensure democracy and parliamentary system get strengthened at any cost.

So, despite having some differences in political ideology, the faction would vote for PM Deuba this time, so that the parliament can function to its full tenure.

“Even if we stay in the opposition afterwards, the party will decide and give a vote of confidence to PM Deuba,” she said.

Leader Jhakri added that the constitution did not envisage the formation of another government after Article 76 (5) of the Constitution.

“As no government can be formed under Article 76 (5) if Deuba government does not get vote of confidence, we should vote for Deuba and let the government work to its full term,” she said, adding, “Since we have been saying that the parliament should work for a full term and we will not go to the mid-term elections, 23 of us will surely vote, yet, we will try to get the formal decision of the party as the agenda is worth supporting.”

However, another leader of the Khanal-Nepal faction, Som Prasad Pandey, said that discussions were underway to form a collective opinion on whether to give a vote of confidence or not.

“We are in an informal meeting to discuss whether to give vote of confidence or not,” he said, adding, “We will settle on it before we go to attend the meeting of the parliament this evening.”

UML Standing Committee meeting is underway before the parliament meeting. UML’s Madhav Kumar Nepal faction lawmakers have not attended today’s meeting as well.