BIRATNAGAR: The ruling coalition is gearing up to claim the position of Chief Minister of Koshi Province by seeking the resignation of the current Speaker, Baburam Gautam.

As per sub-section 2 of Article 168 of the Constitution, the deadline for the head of state’s government formation mandate expires today at 5 pm (Tuesday).

The most likely candidate for the Chief Minister post from the ruling alliance is Nepali Congress leader Uddhab Thapa.

On July 6, Thapa’s government was formed in the province with the inclusion of Speaker Gautam’s signature.

However, the Supreme Court later invalidated the appointment of Chief Minister Thapa, ordering the formation of a new government.

In the 93-member provincial assembly, a majority of 47 votes is required to form a government.

The ruling coalition comprises 29 members from the Nepali Congress, 13 from the Maoist Center, 4 from the Unified Socialist Party, and one from the Janata Samajwadi Party in the Koshi Province Assembly.

In the event that the government formed under sub-section 2 of Article 168 does not receive a vote of confidence, Hikmat Kumar Karki, the leader of the UML parliamentary party, will be appointed as the Chief Minister as per Article 168 (3) of the Constitution.