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| Constituent Assembly of Nepal | |
|---|---|
| Name | Constituent Assembly of Nepal |
| Native name | संविधान सभा नेपाल |
| Foundation | 2008 |
| Succeeded by | Legislature Parliament of Nepal |
| Meeting place | Kathmandu |
| Members | 601 (First CA), 575 (Second CA) |
| Notable figures | Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Girija Prasad Koirala, Sushil Koirala, KP Sharma Oli |
Constituent Assembly of Nepal
The Constituent Assembly of Nepal was a unicameral body convened to draft a new Constitution of Nepal following the end of the Nepalese Civil War and the 2006 Loktantra Andolan; it functioned alongside transitional institutions such as the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007 and the Nepal Interim Legislature-Parliament. The Assembly emerged from negotiations involving the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the Nepali Congress, and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) and operated amid interventions by regional actors including India and multilateral entities like the United Nations Mission in Nepal. The body held two iterations (the First CA elected in 2008 and the Second CA elected in 2013) and worked under influences from personalities such as Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Girija Prasad Koirala, Madhav Kumar Nepal, Sushil Koirala, and KP Sharma Oli.
The Assembly was established after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement, 2006 between the Government of Nepal (1951–2008) and the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), which followed a decade-long insurgency known as the Nepalese Civil War and the mass movement of Jana Andolan II. International mediation involved actors such as the United Nations, the United Kingdom, and India and drew on frameworks from the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007 and recommendations by commissions like the Election Commission, Nepal; leading negotiators included figures from the Nepali Congress leadership and the United Democratic Forum-Nepal.
The First Assembly comprised 601 members elected through a mixed system combining elements of the First-past-the-post model administered by the Election Commission, Nepal and Proportional representation lists submitted by parties such as the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist), the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, and the Terai-Madhesh Loktantrik Party. Prominent representatives included Bam Dev Gautam, Mohan Bikram Singh, Bishnu Prasad Paudel, and Upendra Yadav. The Second Assembly reduced membership to 575 and reflected shifts after the 2013 Nepalese Constituent Assembly election, with participation by the Rastriya Janamorcha, Janata Samajbadi Party, Nepal, and Rastriya Swatantra Party in later periods.
Mandated by the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007, the Assembly had the authority to draft and promulgate a new constitution, transform the Monarchy of Nepal into a Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, and legislate on transitional arrangements affecting institutions like the Nepalese Army and the Supreme Court of Nepal. Its powers intersected with executive mandates held by prime ministers such as Girija Prasad Koirala and Madhav Kumar Nepal, and it engaged with statutory frameworks like the Constitution Drafting Committee and the Special Committee on Fundamental Rights.
The Assembly convened plenary sessions in venues across Kathmandu and committee hearings that included stakeholder groups from the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum, Nepal Federation of Indigenous Nationalities (NEFIN), and women's organizations like the National Women Commission (Nepal). Legislative outputs included interim laws addressing decommissioning of weapons, integration of former combatants into the Nepal Army, and amendments to the Interim Constitution of Nepal, 2007; key debates referenced precedents from the Indian Constituent Assembly and comparative experiences of South Africa and Ireland.
Drafting involved multiple iterations by bodies such as the Constitution Drafting Committee (CDC) and was influenced by submissions from groups including the All Nepal National Free Students Union and the Federation of Nepali Journalists. Contentious issues included federal delineation advocated by the Madhesi Front, secularism contested by the Rastriya Prajatantra Party, and provisions on citizenship raised by the International Commission of Jurists and domestic actors like Biraj Bhatta. The First Assembly failed to promulgate a constitution by its deadline, leading to dissolution and the subsequent 2013 election; the Second Assembly ultimately promulgated the Constitution of Nepal, 2015 under leadership that involved Sushil Koirala and Khadga Prasad Sharma Oli dynamics and endorsements from figures like Ram Baran Yadav.
Political contestation within the Assembly featured rivalry among the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), the Nepali Congress, and the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) alongside regional parties such as the Terai Madhes Loktantrik Party and the Madhesi Janadhikar Forum. Leadership struggles included prime ministerial rotations among Girija Prasad Koirala, Pushpa Kamal Dahal, and Madhav Kumar Nepal with coalition-building involving entities like the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal and influence from diasporic networks and foreign missions including India and the European Union Election Observation Mission to Nepal.
The Assembly's principal legacy was the promulgation of the Constitution of Nepal, 2015, which reconfigured state structures into a federal model with provinces, altered the role of the former Monarchy of Nepal, and reshaped institutions such as the Election Commission, Nepal and the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers. Its processes generated legal and political precedents affecting transitional justice mechanisms overseen by entities like the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (Nepal) and influenced subsequent parliaments including the Federal Parliament of Nepal; critics and supporters invoked the Assembly's record in debates involving the Madhesi Movement, Tharu activists, and international stakeholders such as the United Nations Human Rights Council.
Category:Politics of Nepal Category:2008 establishments in Nepal