KATHMANDU: The Bijaya Kumar Gachhadar-led Nepal Democratic Forum (formerly called Madhesi Janaadhikar Forum Democratic) is likely to join the Pushpa Kamal Dahal-led government today, multiple sources said.

Gachhadar will lead the party in the Cabinet as a Deputy Prime Minister with the portfolio of Local Development.

As per an understanding with the two major ruling parties Nepali Congress and CPN Maoist Centre, Gachhadar's party will get two other ministries -- Ministry for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, and Ministry of Land Reform and Management.

The party held an internal meeting to officially decide the party's participation in the government this afternoon.

Chairman Gachhadar has been entrusted with the authority to choose the ministers, leader Ram Janam Chaudhary told THT Online over phone.

The three ministers will be sworn in amid a function at the President's Office in Sheetal Niwas at 5:30 pm, Chaudhary informed.

The Nepal Democratic Forum, which was formed after merger of MJF-Democratic, Shiva Lal Thapa’s Rastriya Janamukti Party-Democratic, Yashoda Kumari Lama's Dalit Janajati Party and Bhanuram Tharu's Tharuhat Tarai Party Nepal, is currently the fifth largest party in the Parliament with 18 lawmakers.

The three ministries are lying vacant after the Kamal Thapa-led Rastriya Prajatantra Party pulled out of the Cabinet.

Earlier, Gachhadar was the second man in the KP Sharma Oli-led government as the senior-most Deputy Prime Minister.

He, however, withdrew his party's support to Oli when the Nepali Congress and CPN Maoist Centre jointly lodged a no-confidence motion against the CPN-UML-led coalition government in July last year.

Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba and CPN Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal had joined hands to oust Oli from the government with an understanding to form a new coalition government and lead it one after another.

Dahal was sworn in as Nepal's 39th Prime Minister on August 4.

As per a gentleman's agreement between Deuba and Dahal, the latter is expected to resign as the Prime Minister after the local level elections scheduled for May 14.

Chaudhary said his party will send other ministers in the government in the "second phase", hinting that the party is likely to get more ministries in the Deuba-led new government.

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