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Nepal king stripped of more powers
YOUR E-MAIL ALERTS(CNN) -- Nepal's parliament on Saturday took action to further strip King Gyanendra of power, with lawmakers unanimously endorsing a regulation saying the king has no say in passing bills, according to a parliament spokesman. The regulation approved by Nepal's House of Representatives says the king will have no role in parliament, said Mukundo Sharma, parliament secretariat spokesman. "In the past, the parliament needed the King's permission to pass any new bills, but this new regulation authorizes the Speaker of the House to certify the passing of all bills," Sharma said. "This means the system of 'King in Parliament' which we used to have in Nepal now no longer exists." Last month, the parliament took action to remove the kind as the supreme commander of the army and stripped the king of his tax-free status, making him subject to the law -- meaning he could be ordered to testify in court or before parliament. In addition, lawmakers took over the purse strings and will determine the king's budget. And Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala presented a declaration to parliament that makes Nepal a secular state, no longer a Hindu kingdom, and instigated a change in the country's national anthem. King Gyanendra's decreasing power follows weeks of bloody protests that ended earlier this year when he agreed to restore the parliament that he had disbanded in 2002. Journalist Sumnima Udas in Kathmandu contributed to this report. 
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