Arjun Narasingh KC to Chair First Meeting of the House of Representatives: What Is the Procedure?

March 17, Kathmandu – Following the election results, the Secretariat of the Federal Parliament is preparing for the first meeting of the House of Representatives.

The Secretariat is advancing internal preparations related to office arrangements for political parties, oath-taking by newly elected members, and the chairpersonship of the upcoming assembly.

The Election Commission will provide certificates to proportional representation MPs on Thursday. Directly elected members have already received their certificates. Out of the 275-member House of Representatives, 165 are directly elected and 110 are proportional representation MPs.

From the election held on February 3, six political parties have attained national party status. The largest party is Rastriya Swatantra Samajwadi Party (RSSP) with 182 seats. The Nepali Congress holds 38 seats, the Communist Party of Nepal (UML) has 25 seats, and the Nepal Communist Party has 17 seats, making them the second, third, and fourth largest parties respectively.

The emerging Labour Culture Party holds 7 seats, ranking fifth, while the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) has 5 seats as the sixth largest party. Additionally, there is one independent candidate.

The Election Commission plans to submit the election report to the President’s office on Thursday and simultaneously inform the Federal Parliament Secretariat.

According to Ekram Giri, Deputy Secretary and spokesperson of the Federal Parliament Secretariat, after receiving the election report on March 18, an oath-taking notification will be issued the following day.

“Preparations are underway to hold the oath-taking ceremony on March 26. Discussions with representatives of political parties will also take place,” Giri stated.

Seniority members will administer the oath to the newly elected MPs. Traditionally, senior members take the oath with the President.

According to the Election Commission data, the senior-most member among the 275 is Arjun Narasingh KC, who is 78 years old.

Article 88 of the Constitution stipulates that each house member must take an oath before participating in their first meeting. Furthermore, clause 5 of Article 91 states that if the Speaker or Deputy Speaker has not been elected or if the position is vacant, the senior-most member shall chair the meeting.

Accordingly, Senior Member KC will chair the House of Representatives’ sessions until the Speaker is elected.

The first meeting will establish the schedule for the Speaker’s election; once the Speaker is elected, this responsibility of the senior member will conclude.

How will the first meeting proceed and what agendas will it cover?

Spokesperson Giri explained that a cross-party meeting will be convened with all members present to set the agenda for the first day.

The meeting customarily begins with the reading of the convocation letter.

On September 9-10, following the Janajati protest movement, then Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned. Afterward, an interim government was formed, and the House of Representatives was dissolved on September 13. Now, after the new election, the House is preparing to convene again.

During this interval, information about government formation and new cabinet members will be presented to the House.

The first meeting will include a proposal on whether to adopt interim rules of procedure for conducting the session or follow the existing rules.

The schedule for the Speaker’s election will also be presented.

It is traditional for top leaders of political parties to deliver goodwill speeches during the first meeting.

Any condolence motions will be presented and passed by the House before concluding the meeting.

The second meeting may be convened to elect the Speaker or address other agenda items. Additionally, the formation process of parliamentary subject committees will begin.

The House has 10 subject committees, including two joint committees. Once membership is decided by party affiliation, the committees will start functioning.

Committee formation and appointment of committee chairs are decided within the House.

If new rules are adopted, committee formation will begin afterward; if existing rules are followed, committees can be formed more swiftly.

As the process for appointing the Chief Justice progresses, pressure is mounting to form the parliamentary hearing committee. Six names have already been recommended to the Constitutional Council for this committee.

Upon the Constitutional Council’s recommendation, the parliamentary hearing committee will be formed to approve the Chief Justice appointment.

Alongside these matters, the Secretariat plans to hold an all-party meeting to determine the agenda for the first and subsequent sessions of the House of Representatives.