Oli criticises Nepal PM Deuba for record 64-member Cabinet

Nepal's main opposition leader and CPN-UML chief K P Oli has strongly objected to Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba's move to induct eight more ministers that took his Cabinet strength to a record 64, calling it a violation of the election code.

Former premier Oli, who was addressing parliament's last meeting yesterday, came down heavily on Prime Minister Deuba for "blatantly breaching the election code and instructions from the Election Commission (EC)".

He termed the prime minister's move as "unconstitutional, unethical and immoral".

Eight new ministers including Deputy Prime Minister Kamal Thapa of the Rastriya Prajatantra Party were inducted into the Deuba Cabinet.
 

"We have a serious objection to the prime minister's move of adding new ministers at a time when the election processes have already started and the government is being converted into a caretaker one," said Oli, asking Deuba why he expanded the Cabinet size to 64.

The number of ministers in the Cabinet is now over 10 per cent of the 601-member Parliament.

Parliament has ceased to exist from yesterday as per the constitutional provision that states the term of the House would end a day before the nomination of the candidates for the election to the House of Representatives.

Oli asked Deuba to withdraw the names of the proposed ministers before they are sworn in.

The prime minister, however, said since he has already received the "go ahead" for Cabinet expansion from both the EC and the president, his plan to expand the Cabinet and other processes would move ahead smoothly.

Oli accused the prime minister of expanding the Cabinet despite that the EC writing to the government twice asking it not to do so as such a decision would directly violate the election code.

Oli also told Parliament that he had drawn the president's attention towards the matter.

"I have told the president that this (Cabinet expansion) is objectionable and is in violation of the election code," the former prime minister said.

Deuba described the Cabinet expansion as a regular constitutional business of a prime minister.

"The number of ministers may sometimes increase while it may also decrease as needed. You may hear about decreasing the number of minister in a few days," he said.