Nepal PM wins confidence vote in House

Nepal's prime minister won a parliamentary vote of confidence yesterday amid protests by the opposition demanding a parliamentary probe into allegations that his home minister illegally took money from several companies before he entered politics.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal, a former Maoist rebel chief in the Himalayan nation sandwiched between China and India, formed a coalition cabinet in March with the support of the liberal Communist Unified Marxist-Leninist party and several smaller parties. A fresh vote of confidence became necessary after a junior partner in the coalition withdrew support following differences with the leader.

The main opposition Nepali Congress said Dahal must set up a parliamentary panel to probe allegations that Deputy PM Rabi Lamichhane illegally took large amounts of money from a number of cooperative companies.