KATHMANDU, Feb 1: Chairperson of National Assembly (NA) Ganesh Prasad Timilsina has objected to the move of House of Representatives (HoR) Speaker Agni Prasad Sapkota to unilaterally return the recommendations of candidates made earlier by the Constitutional Council in various constitutional bodies.

Organizing a press conference at the Federal Parliament Secretariat in Singh Durbar on Monday, Chairperson Timilsina said that he had a strong objection over the decision of Sapkota to return the original letter of the recommendations, the jurisdiction over it and the way the letter and content of letter was used by the Speaker. 

Timilsina mentioned that the role of both houses HoR and NA is equal in a bicameral parliamentary system and thus the speaker alone cannot take decisions in such cases.  ”With this unilateral decision of the Speaker, the role and respect of the upper House has been undermined” Timilsina argued.  

Timilsina added that the joint committees of the federal parliament are equally responsible to both houses and both chiefs of the houses are equally responsible to make any decision.  

The upper house chairperson added that returning the recommendation letter to the constitutional council was a unilateral decision of Speaker Sapkota and that the upper house and he as chairperson of the upper house won’t endorse the Speaker Sapkota’s decision. 

“Any recommendations received in the federal parliament from any authorized bodies are the property of both houses therefore it should be executed with the consent of both houses,” he said. 

Chairman Timilsina further argued that the CC’s recommendations to various posts in the constitutional bodies were made following due process in his presence and was then forwarded to the parliamentary hearing committee before the recommendation to dissolve the HoR was made.

 
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