1st Nepalese Constituent Assembly

[1] The Constituent Assembly (CA) was tasked with writing a new constitution,[2] and acting as the interim legislature for a term of two years.

[5][8] The CA was unable to draft a new constitution, and was dissolved on May 28, 2012, after its original and extended total tenure of four years.

[15] Koirala said that Nepal was entering a new era and that "the nation's dream has come true", while celebrations took place in Kathmandu;[16] May 29 and May 30 were declared to be public holidays by the government.

The NC wanted these positions to be chosen through a simple majority vote in the Constituent Assembly (CA).

[20] Addressing a rally in Gorkha district on June 1, Prachanda gave Koirala an ultimatum to present his resignation to the CA within two or three days, warning that if he failed to do so, the Maoist members of the government would resign and the party would lead street protests.

The party expressed continued opposition to a proposal that would allow the Prime Minister to be dismissed by a simple majority vote of the CA.

[27] On June 11, Gyanendra gave a brief press conference at Narayanhiti, stating his acceptance of the republic and promising cooperation.

[30] According to the CPN (M) Minister for Local Development, Dev Gurung, the purpose of the resignations was to "accelerate the process of formation of a new government and bring an end to the current transitional period".

[31] Also on June 12, CPN (UML) General Secretary Jhala Nath Khanal asserted that a member of his party should become president.

[33] At a meeting with Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist-Leninist) (2002) [CPN(M-L)(2002)] General Secretary C. P. Mainali on June 14, Koirala stressed the importance of power-sharing according to the popular mandate and consensus.

[36] Prachanda, meanwhile, said that he expected the new government to be formed imminently, calling on other parties to support this and warning that anyone contravening the people's mandate would have a "heavy price" to pay.

[39] CPN (UML) General Secretary Khanal said on June 17 that it was important for the left-wing parties to work together.

However, CPN (M) spokesman Krishna Bahadur Mahara said that they were getting closer to an agreement, and he said that the party had postponed its deadline to June 19.

Koirala, who was supportive of the NFIN's request, also sharply criticized his rivals on this occasion, saying that they were practicing petty politics and were not respecting the people's mandate to work on a consensus basis.

[49] Sher Bahadur Deuba of the NC said on June 24 that the CPN (M) was responsible for the deadlock and claimed that it was working to divide the Seven-Party Alliance.

[50] Also on June 24, the seven parties agreed on the introduction of a constitutional amendment providing for the election of a President and the formation of a government through simple majority votes.

The CA met later that day and was again disrupted by representatives of the Madhesi parties, forcing the cancellation of the meeting after only a few minutes.

"[58] Prachanda, in an interview on June 30, expressed frustration with the Madhesi parties' disruption, which occurred just after Koirala's resignation, when it appeared the road to forming a new government was clear.

[59] Khanal, the CPN (UML) General Secretary, flatly rejected the demand for a single Madhesi province, condemning it as "a game to disintegrate the nation".

The draft requires the State Restructuring Commission to consider the March 2008 agreement between the government and the Madhesis when drawing up Nepal's federal structure.

[71] 23 of the 26 nominated members of the CA were sworn in on July 7; the remaining three were unable to attend the swearing in ceremony.

[73] The Constituent Assembly (CA) was able to meet and function on July 9, for the first time since the Madhesis began pressing their demands on June 26.

[74] Although they did not disrupt the CA on this occasion, the three Madhesi parties furiously condemned the proposed bill and vowed that their struggle would continue.

Narendra Bikram Nemwang, the Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, tabled the bill regardless.

[77] However, the CPN (M) criticized the NC on July 12 for "obstructing the process [of forming a government] for the past three months".