The chief minister of the Sudurpashchim Province is the head of government of Sudurpashchim Province. The chief minister is appointed by the governor of the province according to Article 167 of the Constitution of Nepal. The chief minister remains in office for five years or until the provincial assembly is dissolved, and is subject to no term limits, given that they have the confidence of the assembly.
The current chief minister is Nepali Congress, Khag Raj Bhatta, in office since 14 August 2026.
Qualification The Constitution of Nepal sets the qualifications required to become eligible for the office of chief minister. A chief minister must meet the qualifications to become a member of the provincial assembly.
A member of the provincial assembly must be:
a citizen of Nepal a voter of the concerned province of 25 years of age or more not convicted of any criminal offense not disqualified by any law not holding any office of profit
In addition to this, the chief minister must be the parliamentary party leader of the party with the majority seats in the provincial assembly. If no party has a majority, the chief minister must have a majority in the assembly with the support from other parties. If within thirty days of the election, a chief minister is not appointed as such, or fails to obtain a vote of confidence from the assembly, the parliamentary party leader of the party with the most seats in the assembly is appointed chief minister. If the chief minister such appointed fails to obtain a vote of confidence in the assembly, any assembly member who can command a majority in the floor, irrespective of party allegiance, is appointed chief minister. If this chief minister also fails to obtain a vote of confidence, the governor dissolves the assembly and fresh elections are called.
List of chief ministers of Sudurpashchim province Portrait Name Term of office Assembly Political party Cabinet Assumed office Left office Time in office 1 Trilochan Bhatta 17 February 2018 11 January 2023 1st CPN (Maoist Centre) T. Bhatta 2 Rajendra Singh Rawal 12 January 2023 9 February 2023 2nd CPN (UML) Rawal 3 Kamal Bahadur Shah 10 February 2023 17 April 2024 Nepali Congress Shah I 4Dirgha Bahadur Sodari18 April 20244 August 2024CPN (Unified Socialist)Sodari (3) Kamal Bahadur Shah 5 August 2024 13 August 2026 Nepali Congress Shah II 5 Khag Raj Bhatta 14 August 2026 Incumbent Nepali Communist Party K. Bhatta
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