INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
KATHMANDU, AUGUST 20
Co-chair of the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) Pushpa Kamal Dahal today told Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to
withdraw recent political appointments as that could adversely affect the environment within the party at a time when a task force had
already been formed to solve the intra-party feud.
Dahal told Oli that he should make political appointments only after getting them
approved by the party Secretariat, a source close to Dahal told THT.
The government recently appointed Durga Bhandari as the acting
chairperson of Press Council Nepal
The appointment was stayed by the Supreme Court yesterday
The government also appointed Kalyan Rokka as the chair of Youth and Small Enterprises Self- Employment Fund
A few days ago, Dahal and senior NCP leader Jhalanath Khanal had met Oli and opposed the appointment of Sushil Bhatta as the chief of
Prime Ministers Press Adviser Surya Thapa, however, said the issue of political appointments did not figure in the talks between Oli and
Dahal.
The government has not been able to make appointments in some constitutional bodies and government institutions, including
commissions formed to protect the rights of Madhesis, Janajatis, women, Dalits and other marginalised and vulnerable groups and communities
mainly due to lack of coordination between the government and the leader of opposition.
In recent weeks, the PM consulted Leader of
Opposition Sher Bahadur Deuba, who is a member of the Constitutional Council, on multiple occasions regarding the appointment of candidates
in several government institutions, including constitutional commissions.
High-profile political appointments are made on the recommendation
of the Constitutional Council, chaired by the prime minister.
The Constitutional Council has to take a unanimous decision while recommending
names for appointments to constitutional bodies.
The PM had brought an ordinance in April to amend the Constitutional Council Act, allowing
the Constitutional Council to take its decision on the basis of majority
The PMs move was criticised by opposition parties as an attempt to monopolise the appointments to the constitutional bodies
Civil society members have alleged that the government and the main opposition party were acting against the spirit of the constitution by
sharing the spoils by making political appointments to constitutional bodies rather than picking people on the basis of merit.
A version of
this article appears in e-paper on August 21, 2020, of The Himalayan Times.
The post NCP co-chair Dahal tells PM Oli to rescind political
appointments appeared first on The Himalayan Times.
