KATHMANDU, Oct 12: In an apparent bid to save his government, Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal on Monday elevated Foreign Minister Sujata Koirala to the post of deputy prime minister after he could no longer resist continuous pressure from her father and Nepali Congress President Girija Prasad Koirala. [break]
Nepal administered the oath of office and secrecy to Sujata Koirala in the presence of President Dr Ram Baran Yadav, amidst a function at the President´s Office Monday evening.
Koirala senior had been exerting pressure on Nepal for his daughter´s promotion ever since she returned from her India visit in mid-August. Koirala raised the issue of his daughter´s elevation whenever Nepal met him. But the prime minister had continued to resist the pressure, something that prompted Sujata to cancel her trip to India in the prime minister´s entourage.
“I appointed her as asked by Girija Prasad Koirala,” the prime minister told journalists after administering oath to the newly appointed deputy prime minister. “His request reflects the decision of the Nepali Congress.”
Nepal appointed Sujata though there was no decision on her promotion from the Nepali Congress. “It is the right of the prime minister to appoint me deputy prime minister. The Nepali Congress president has supported the prime minister in this regard,” Sujata told journalists.
She further said that there was no controversy as such in her party over her appointment as deputy prime minister. She said that she would work for peace and stability in the country.
“My party has supported me,” she further said.
With Sujata´s appointment, the present government now has two deputy prime ministers. The prime minister´s press advisor, Bishnu Rijal, told myrepublica.com that Sujata will be junior to another deputy prime minister, Bijaya Kumar Gachchhadar. “The practice is that whoever is appointed first ranks higher in the cabinet,” Rijal said.
kiran@myrepublica.com
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