KATHMANDU, APRIL 9
Four CPN-Maoist Centre lawmakers, who had lost their House of Representatives seats and ministership after defecting from their mother party, were re-inducted into Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli-led Cabinet, today.
President Bidhya Devi Bhandari administered the oath of office and secrecy to Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, Lekhraj Bhatta, Prabhu Sah, and Gauri Shankar Chaudhary in the presence of Prime Minister Oli. They were assigned the same portfolios which they had held before they lost their HoR seats. All four will have to get elected to the lower house within six months to continue as ministers.
Oli recommended the reappointment of the four in consonance with the constitutional provision that enables appointment of individuals who are not members of Parliament, as ministers for a period of six months.
The four were recently nominated as the central committee members of the Oli-led CPN-UML.
Rayamajhi is energy, water resources, and irrigation minister, Bhatta industries, commerce, and supply minister, Prabhu Sah urban development minister, and Chaudhary employment and social security minister.
All four had thrown their weight behind Oli during the factional feud in the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), which was formed with the unification of the CPN-MC and the UML.
The unification of the two parties was later nullified by an apex court ruling.
A version of this article appears in the print on April 10, 2021, of The Himalayan Times.
