Kathmandu, Jul 3 (PTI) Nepali Congress president Sher Bahadur Deuba Wednesday asked Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' to step down and pave the way for the formation of a new government after the Himalayan nation's two largest political parties struck a power-sharing deal to oust the former guerrilla leader.

"The Prime Minister should resign after the largest parties NC and UML said that they would form a new government together," Deuba told reporters after a crucial meeting of the party at his residence at Budhanilkantha on the outskirts of Kathmandu.

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Deuba, 78, and Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN-UML) chairman K P Sharma Oli, 72, - both former premiers - inked a power-sharing deal Monday night to form a new government. They agreed to share the Prime Ministerial position on a rotation basis for the rest of the term of the Parliament.

Nepali Congress, the largest party in the 275-member House of Representatives, has 89 seats at present, while CPN-UML has 78 seats. Their combined strength of 167 is sufficient for a majority of 138 seats in the lower house. Prachanda's party has 32 seats.

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The Nepali Congress Central Work Performance Committee (CWC) met at Deuba's residence at Budhanilkantha to discuss the current political situation and the party's future strategy.

"The meeting reviewed the latest political situation in the country and discussed the future course of action," said former foreign minister Narayan Prakash Saud. The meeting also endorsed the agreement reached between Deuba and Oli to form a new coalition and share the post of Prime Minister on a rotation basis.

The meeting mainly discussed the agenda and modality of formation of the new coalition government, said Saud, who is also a Nepali Congress central committee member.

The seven-point deal finalised between Deuba and Oli on Monday night includes the sharing of the remaining three-year term of Parliament between the two parties, the ministerial division, provincial leadership roles and a rotation for the prime ministerial position. Oli will assume the post of Prime Minister in the first phase and after one-and-a-half-year, the Nepali Congress will get the leadership of the government.

Speaking to journalists after the meeting, party spokesperson Dr Prakash Sharan Mahat said, “The prime minister should pave the way after the largest parties -- Nepali Congress and UML -- said they would form a new government together. This is also included in the decision."

"Other parties, too, are supporting the new Nepali Congress-UML alliance. So, the Nepali Congress CWC has requested the prime minister to pave the way,” he added.

Mahat said a new government will be formed through the constitutional process if the prime minister does not pave the way for the formation of a new government.

A senior leader of CPN-UML indicated that all the ministers of the CPN-UML will resign en masse to put pressure on Prachanda to step down.

"Our ministers are ready to quit the post en masse but we are waiting for the Prime Minister to resign by Wednesday evening," said Bishnu Rijal, central committee member of UML. The UML has already urged the Prime Minister to resign from the post paving the way for the new government formation.

Meanwhile, the spokesperson of Janata Samajwadi Party Nepal Manish Suman said that his party will support the new coalition but has not yet decided on joining the government.

JSP Nepal has five members in the Parliament. Rastriya Prajatantra Party with 14 members in the House of Representatives and Lokatantrik Samajwadi Party with four seats have also indicated support for the new coalition.

However, embattled Prime Minister Prachanda has refused to resign from the post and said he would rather face a vote of confidence in Parliament.

According to the constitutional provision, the prime minister losing a majority support in the House will be required to prove a majority within 30 days. The prime minister must seek a vote of confidence once a ruling alliance withdraws support. This will be the fifth time Prachanda, 69, will seek a vote of confidence within a term of one and a half years.

The former guerilla leader has won three votes of confidence in Parliament.

The CPN-UML has already urged Prime Minister Prachanda to step down from the position so that a new government can be formed as per the constitutional provision.

It also asked all the political parties to join the “national government” under the leadership of Oli to bolster political stability in the country.

But delaying its earlier decision, the party has decided to not recall ministers from the Prachanda-led Cabinet immediately.

"We don't want more animosity [against the CPN-Maoist Centre] and so we did not recall our ministers today,” Pradeep Gyawali, deputy general secretary of the UML.

“But if the prime minister does not pave the way for new government formation by tomorrow [Wednesday] evening, we will recall our ministers and take other necessary steps,” The Kathmandu Post newspaper quoted him as saying.

“If the prime minister ignores UML's request [to quit], our party will withdraw its support to the government,” Gyawali said.

Nepal has had 13 governments in the last 16 years, indicating the fragile nature of the Himalayan nation's political system.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)