Kathmandu, October 1

Prime Minister Sushil Koirala today sacked Minister for Energy Radha Gyawali and accepted the resignation of Minster for Youth and Sports Purushottam Poudel snubbing coalition partner CPN-UML.

CPN-UML has taken PM Koirala’s step to oust UML ministers as an indication not to resign as PM tomorrow.

According to Secretary of the CPN-UML Central Secretariat Krishna Gopal Shrestha, party Chairman KP Sharma Oli did not believe when he informed him about the action taken by PM Koirala this afternoon. “It is not possible,” Shrestha quoted Oli as saying when he was told about the sacking of Gyawali.

Oli has been urging PM Koirala not to oust UML ministers based on the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority’s charges, as a new government was to be formed within a few days, Shrestha said.

“UML has taken this action as an indication to break ties between NC and UML,” Shrestha said. CIAA had written to the government to take action against Minister Gyawali on September 18 for her involvement in corruption in Solu-Corridor Transmission line. PM sacked her, as she did not resign despite his direction. CIAA had also written to the government to take action against Minister Poudel for illegally appointing member secretary of the National Sports Council.

Poudel in his eight-page resignation letter has stated that the CIAA’s claim was biased and erroneous. He also claimed that the CIAA acted beyond its constitutional jurisdiction.

In September last year, UML had appointed Deepak Chandra Amatya, recalling the then minister for culture, tourism and civil aviation Bhim Acharya, and Mahesh Basnet replaced the then minister for industry Karna Bahadur Thapa. In May, Amatya was replaced by Kripasur Sherpa.