KATHMANDU, March 26: Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is preparing to expand the cabinet on Monday after reaching an agreement on power-sharing with the ruling coalition parties by Sunday. After taking the vote of confidence for the second time from the House of Representatives on March 20, Prime Minister Dahal said that he would expand the cabinet within Friday. But as Dahal said, the cabinet could not be expanded until Friday due to the lack of party consensus on the division of ministries. However, bilateral, multilateral discussions and internal homework are going on between the ruling coalition parties to reach an agreement.

Prime Minister Dahal, who is also the chairman of the Maoist Center, has said that preparations are being made to expand the cabinet on Monday by holding a meeting of the ruling coalition parties until Sunday evening in the party officials' meeting. Devendra Paudel, secretary of the Maoist Center, has claimed that the Cabinet will be expanded by Monday. Talking to journalists after the meeting of the party officials, Paudel said, “There has been a discussion on delivery matters to expand the Cabinet by Monday.”

Paudel informed Republica that the party’s office-bearers' meeting has suggested to Prime Minister Dahal to reach an agreement on the division of ministries by holding separate and collective discussions with all parties of the alliance. He said, "The Cabinet will expand soon."

Prime Minister Dahal is planning to make Nepali Congress, the largest party in the House of Representatives, participate in the government with eight ministries. The Congress seems almost ready for that. It is prepared to give/take ministries equal to the quotient obtained by dividing the total number of seats in the Nepali Congress by 10. Sources close to Maoists claim that he is more interested in the ministry he will get. Prime Minister Dahal is in favor of giving ministries including finance and foreign affairs to Nepali Congress.

Similarly, the Maoist Center is preparing to take the same number of ministries. Sources claim that other parties in the coalition have a strategy to prevent the fourth power of the House of Representatives from participating in the government immediately. The top leaders of Nepali Congress, Maoists and other parties are in favor of the participation of RSP in the government after the by-election to the members of the House of Representatives.

The meeting of RSP said that RSP is ready to participate in the government led by Dahal if they will get the post of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Home Affairs. On February 5, the RSP exited from the Dahal-led government after the Supreme Court revoked Chairman Rabi Lamichhane's citizenship. The Prime Minister is preparing to hold some ministries for the RSP. Otherwise, Nepali Congress and Maoists will get one more ministry each.

Prime Minister Dahal is also preparing to give two ministries to Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) and CPN (Unified Socialist) Party.

JSP has already got the vice-president while CPN (Unified Socialist) has been claiming three ministries including home affairs. CPN (Unified Socialist) has made a strategy to send all MPs of the party to the government turn by turn. Close sources claim that Rajendra Pandey, Prakash Jwala will participate in the government in the first phase. The Prime Minister is preparing to give one ministry to four small parties including the Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP) and the Nagarik Unmukti Party. Janmat Party is currently in the government.

In the meeting held on Saturday, the Nepali Congress office-bearers discussed various bills related to Cabinet expansion, by-elections to members of the House of Representatives, transitional justice submitted in parliament. Nepali Congress Joint General Secretary Mahalakshmi Upadhyaya said that preparations are being made to expand the Cabinet by Monday after reaching an agreement with the parties of the ruling coalition.

 
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