Kathmandu April 8

Seven CPN-Maoist Centre ministers have decided to meet party Chair Pushpa Kamal Dahal and tell him to raise with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli the issue of transfer of government secretaries without consulting the line ministers concerned.

A CPN-MC minister said the CPN-MC ministers in the Oli-led government felt snubbed by the PM’s decision to unilaterally transfer government secretaries.   Oli had transferred 30 secretaries without consulting  Dahal and CPN-MC ministers before embarking on  India visit. According to PM Oli’s secretariat, the Cabinet meeting on April 3 had  decided to transfer secretaries. CPN-MC ministers said the issue of transfer of secretaries was not discussed in the Cabinet meeting held on April 3, but they discovered later that the minute had the details of secretaries’ transfer.

“We are discussing  the issue with our party Chair Dahal. He will raise the issue with PM,” said a CPN-MC minister.

Dahal has called all the party’s ministers at his residence  tomorrow to discuss the matter. CPN-MC ministers wanted to meet Dahal today at 4:00pm,  but they could not do so  as  Dahal could not arrive in Kathmandu from Chitwan on time.

PM Oli and Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Matrika Prasad Yadav arrived in Kathmandu this evening from India. “The CPN-MC minister should not object to such thing because it is prime ministerial system,” a source close to  PM Oli said.

Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa who represents CPN-MC in the government had called all ministers at his official residence in Pulchowk, Lalitpur, on Friday to discuss the matter. Other five CPN-MC ministers, except  Minister of Education, Science and Technology Giriraj Mani Pokharel and Minister Yadav,  were present in the meeting at Thapa’s residence. On that day,  Yadav was visiting India with PM Oli and Pokharel was out of Kathmandu valley.

According to sources, Home Minister Thapa was surprised that the National Investigation Department was brought under the Prime Minister’s Office without consulting him. Government records show that  NID was brought under  the Prime Minister’s Office before Thapa joined the government on February 26.

PM Oli has directed  Finance Minister Yubraj Khatiwada and Secretary of National Planning Commission to formulate government policy and programmes and the new budget without consulting  the CPN-MC ministers. Sources said the CPN-MC ministers and party Chair Dahal will also discuss the agenda tomorrow.

Government Spokesperson Gokul Baskota did not answer THT’s query on the matter.