The Nepal Supreme Court on Monday reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives for the second time in five months and ordered the appointment of Sher Bahadur Deuba as Prime Minister.

Nepal plunged into political crisis on December 20 after President Bidya Bhandari dissolved Nepal’s 275-member lower house and announced new election dates of April 30 and May 10. This move was reported to be at the recommendation of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oil. However, in February, the court reinstated the dissolved House of Representatives despite Oil’s opposition.

On May 22, Bhandari for the second time dissolved the lower house at the request of Oil. As many as 30 petitions were filed at the Supreme Court against Bhandari’s move. One of the petitions filed had the signatures of 146 lawmakers demanding not only reinstatement of the lower house of Parliament, but also the appointment of Deuba as the prime minister. Oil repeatedly defended his recommendation to dissolve the House of Representatives, saying some leaders of his party were attempting to form a “parallel government”.

In a judgment written by Chief Justice Cholendra Shumsher Rana, the five-judge bench stated, “President Bidya Devi Bhandari’s decision to dissolve the lower house upon a recommendation of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oil was an unconstitutional act.” The court also issued a mandamus to appoint Deuba as Prime Minister by Tuesday.