KATHMANDU, Sep 5: Parliamentary Hearing Special Committee is set to initiate the process for the parliamentary hearings for two ambassadorial nominees for India and China from Tuesday.
A meeting of the committee scheduled for Tuesday is likely to solicit complaints, if any, against Deep Kumar Upadhyay and Leela Mani Paudel, who were recommended for ambassadors to India and China respectively, said committee secretary Dhruba Ghimire.
The committee will publish a notice asking the pubic to file complaints, if any, against the nominees within 10 days, before summoning the nominees for hearings in the committee.
The government recommended Upadhyay and Paudel as ambassadors to the two neighboring countries on September 1, following visit of Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal's separate special envoys to India and China.
Two deputy prime ministers who visited India and China as special envoys of Prime Minister Dahal, had discussed high level exchanges. Though, Dahal is scheduled to being his India visit from September 15, appointment of ambassador to the India prior to his visit is almost unlikely due to the lengthy process involved.
Dilly-dallying at PMO leaves envoy appointments uncertain
After the former government led by K P Oli recalled the then ambassador Upadhyay from India and the tenure of Mahesh Maskey, then ambassador to China, ended, ambassadorial positions in both the countries are vacant. The previous government then recommended former minister Mahendra Bahadur Pandey for China, but Dahal-led government cancelled the recommendation.
Some ambassadorial nominees had filed a writ at the Supreme Court against the Dahal government decision to cancel their recommendation.
A day after the Apex Court declined to issue interim order on the writ petition, hearings committee has convened its meeting for Tuesday to begin the hearings for the nominees.
