Nepal PM resigns ahead of final round of local elections

FILE PHOTO: Nepal's Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, also known as Prachanda, waves towards the media after he was elected Nepal's 24th prime minister in 26 years, in Kathmandu, Nepal, August 3, 2016. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar/File Photo

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Maoist Nepali Prime Minister Prachanda resigned on Wednesday, barely nine months after coming to power, creating a leadership vacuum weeks before the second round of local elections, the first to be held in more than two decades.

Prachanda's exit, which had been expected under a power-sharing deal with the Nepali Congress party, could disrupt the schedule for the final phase of municipal and village assembly polls set for June 14.