KATHMANDU, July 13: The political turmoil that pushed Nepal’s traditional ruling parties into opposition at the federal level is now spilling into the provinces, where coalition partners are locked in bitter disputes over leadership changes, ministerial reshuffles and budget allocations.
The Nepali Congress (NC), CPN-UML and Nepali Communist Party (NCP), which suffered setbacks in the House of Representatives election held in March, have been pushed into the opposition at the federal level. However, despite their weakened position in the national parliament, the parties are still engaged in a fierce struggle to retain and expand their influence in provincial governments.
Rather than focusing on internal reforms and rebuilding public confidence, the parties have continued their efforts to secure power in the provinces, intensifying friction among coalition partners. As disagreements remain unresolved, several provincial governments are facing instability, with budget disputes adding another layer of uncertainty.
Of Nepal’s seven provinces, Koshi, Lumbini and Karnali currently have UML-led governments, while Madhesh, Bagmati, Gandaki and Sudurpaschim are governed by NC-led administrations.
Sudurpaschim government pushed toward crisis
The Sudurpaschim Provincial Government is facing a fresh political crisis after a budget dispute between coalition partners escalated, with six lawmakers from the ruling CPN-UML registering expenditure cut proposals against the provincial budget.
Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah, who had narrowly survived a political challenge about a month ago by reshuffling ministers after a majority of lawmakers from his own party NC launched a signature campaign against him, is now under mounting pressure from coalition partner UML.
The UML has been demanding that the budget be withdrawn and rewritten. After the NC-led provincial government came under pressure over the budget, NC General Secretary Pradip Paudel and UML Audit Commission Chair Dr Pushpa Kandel arrived as representatives of their respective parties to find a solution. However, their discussions ended without any breakthrough.
Although both representatives returned after assuring that the dispute would be resolved through discussions at the central level, the conflict has only deepened.
Amid the standoff, Provincial Minister for Economic Affairs Bikram Singh Dhami presented the budget on behalf of the provincial government at midnight on June 15. The budget was tabled in the provincial assembly only three weeks later.
Six UML lawmakers have since registered expenditure cut proposals against the budget, raising serious questions over the survival of the Sudurpaschim government. The move has drawn attention because the challenge has come from lawmakers of the very party that has been demanding a rewrite of the budget.
Sources at Chief Minister Shah’s secretariat said Shah has asked UML either to withdraw the expenditure cut proposals or leave the government. UML, however, has refused to withdraw the proposals and has not announced any decision to quit the government.
New coalition task force meeting to finalize division of minist...
A UML lawmaker said the party would neither withdraw the proposals nor walk out of the government until the central leadership takes a decision.
In a rare move, UML lawmakers have even filed expenditure cut proposals against ministries controlled by their own party. If the proposals are not withdrawn, the provincial budget cannot be passed.
An employee at the Provincial Assembly Secretariat said three UML lawmakers registered the proposals on Friday, while three others submitted them on Saturday.
UML Sudurpaschim Province Parliamentary Party Leader Rajendra Singh Rawal registered a proposal seeking expenditure cuts under the Ministry of Economic Affairs. Provincial Assembly member Dharma Raj Pathak, who also chairs the Social Development Committee, filed a proposal against the Social Development Ministry, while UML parliamentary party whip Janaki Air Bam registered a proposal against the Ministry of Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives.
Similarly, UML Sudurpaschim Province Parliamentary Party Deputy Leader Santosh Sharma Thapa, Chief Whip Chakra Malla and lawmaker Daman Bhandari registered proposals on Friday seeking expenditure cuts from three ministries.
Thapa filed a proposal against the Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment; Malla against the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development; and Bhandari against the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law.
Among the ministries targeted by the expenditure cut proposals, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Law and the Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development are currently led by UML ministers.
Dharma Raj Pathak said UML had repeatedly demanded that the budget presented in the provincial assembly be withdrawn and rewritten.
“We had demanded that the budget be taken back and rewritten. Since our demand was not addressed, we registered expenditure cut proposals,” he said.
Pathak said six provincial assembly members had submitted the proposals. The proposals state: “The expenditure amount under the headings should be reduced and maintained at one rupee.”
Earlier, a UML Parliamentary Party meeting had decided that the budget required revision and formed a task force under the coordination of UML Sudurpaschim Chief Whip Chakra Malla.
Lawmakers Janaki Air Bam and Social Development Committee Chairperson Dharma Raj Pathak were members of the task force.
Based on the recommendations of the task force, UML decided to register expenditure cut proposals against six ministries through six lawmakers.
Pathak said the budget could not be passed in its current form because of major disagreements over its contents.
Meanwhile, Khag Raj Bhatta, parliamentary party leader of the opposition NCP Sudurpaschim Provincial Government, has also registered an expenditure cut proposal.
Following UML’s move, pressure has grown from within the party’s own ranks for its ministers to step down, with cadres arguing that it would be morally inappropriate for UML ministers to remain in government while their party itself is challenging the budget.
The Sudurpaschim Provincial Government is a coalition between NC and UML. NC has Chief Minister Shah, the Economic Affairs Minister, three ministers and two state ministers, while UML has three ministers and two state ministers.
Bagmati set for ministerial reshuffle by mid-July
The Bagmati Provincial Government is preparing for a ministerial reshuffle by mid-July, with ruling coalition partners NC and UML making internal preparations to induct new ministers.
The Bagmati government currently has 14 ministries, including the Office of the Chief Minister and Council of Ministers (OCMCM). A decision has already been made to reduce the number of ministries by six and bring the total down to eight.
NC Bagmati Provincial Government member and NC-UML task force member Ram Krishna Chitrakar said preparations were underway to change ministers while implementing the restructuring decision from July 17.
“The decision to reduce the number of ministries is already included in the policy and program. Congress and UML had reached an agreement to reduce ministries even before the previous House of Representatives election,” Chitrakar said. “Except for the chief minister, the possibility of other ministers continuing is very low.”
According to Chitrakar, NC will receive five ministries, including the Chief Minister’s Office, while UML will get three ministries.
Currently, Bagmati has 14 ministries under the leadership of NC Chief Minister Indra Bahadur Baniya. UML has six ministers in the provincial government.
Under the power-sharing agreement between NC and UML to run the government on a rotational basis, NC was supposed to lead Bagmati only until March 22. However, the agreement could not be implemented after new political developments emerged following the Gen-Z movement.
Chitrakar said ministers would be changed without replacing the chief minister for now.
“There has been no discussion within our party about changing the chief minister at the moment. That is a matter to be decided by the top leaders of the party,” he said. “Until a decision comes from the higher level, Bagmati Province will continue to operate under our leadership.”
After restructuring, Bagmati will have eight ministries: the OCMCM, Ministry of Economic Affairs and Planning, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Law and Cooperatives, Ministry of Physical Infrastructure Development, Ministry of Agriculture, Forest and Environment, Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Labor and Transport, Ministry of Health and Social Development, and Ministry of Water Supply, Energy and Irrigation.
The Bagmati Provincial Government has already allocated its budget according to the new structure.
UML parliamentary party leader JN Thapaliya said ministers are likely to be changed by July 17.
“Until now, we have not recalled our ministers,” Thapaliya said. “There could be a possibility of changing ministers.”
Thapaliya would have already become chief minister if the previous agreement had been implemented. He believes the issue of ministerial reshuffle was pushed aside after new political circumstances emerged.
