KATHMANDU: Newly elected 18 members in the National Assembly, the Upper House in the Federal Parliament, took oath of office and secrecy today.

NA chairman Ganesh Prasad Timilsina administered oath of office and secrecy to the new members amidst a programme at the Federal Parliament Building, in New Baneshwor.

The elected NA members will have a six-year term. Among them, 16 are from the ruling Nepal Communist Party (NCP) and two are from the Rastriya Janata Party-Nepal (RJP-N).

Indira Devi Gautam, Gopi Bahadur Sarki Achhami, Devendra Dahal, Tulasa Kumari Dahal, Radheshyam Paswan, Shekhar Kumar Singh, Mrigendra Kumar Singh Yadav, Ganga Kumari Belbase and Beduram Bhusal are the new faces entering the NA. Newly elected members to the NA — Bhagawati Neupane, Narayan Kaji Shrestha, Bimala Ghimire, Jaga Prasad Sharma, Gopal Bhattarai, Sumitra BC, Maya Prasad Sharma, Sharada Devi Bhatta and Taraman Swar — also took the oath today.

On the occasion, the NA chair offered the official logo to the new members and congratulated them.

Similarly, the Federal Parliament Secretariat had provided them with packages containing the copy of the Constitution and laws. Through the NA election held on January 23, seven women, two Dalits, two persons with disabilities or from the marginalised group and seven from other groups had been elected as NA members. However, the nomination of one member by the President on the government’s recommendation is awaited. Those 18 lawmakers who completed their two-year term in the NA were given farewell on Tuesday.

The term was determined through a lottery as per the constitutional provision (Article 86). The NA remaining as a permanent chamber is a body of 59 members including three, at least one woman, nominated by the President on the recommendation of the government.

NA vice chair, NA parliamentary party leaders, chief whip, whips, members, those completing their terms recently and relatives of newly elected members were present on the occasion.