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Inauspicious day delays Nepal PM's swearing in

Nepal's new Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala refused to be sworn into office today, the last day of the Nepalese calendar, considered inauspicious by astrologers.

Koirala, 72, was appointed prime minister yesterday by King Birendra to head a minority government after no political party managed to form a partnership in Nepal's split parliament.

Nepalese consider the last day of the calendar inauspicious for starting new jobs. Nepal celebrates its New Year Day tomorrow, a national holiday. So, Koirala will be sworn in on Wednesday, officials said.

Koirala will have to secure the confidence of parliament within a month. His Nepali Congress has 87 seats in the 205-seat house of representatives, Nepal's lower house of parliament.

One faction of the recently split Communists, with 49 votes, has pledged to support Koirala. At least 103 votes are required for the government to continue.

Koirala hails from a family of politicians. Both his elder brothers were prime ministers.

This is Koirala's second term in office since the restoration of democracy in 1990. Koirala's Nepali Congress swept the 1991 election and he was appointed the first prime minister of democratic Nepal.

UNI

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