UML gives up its stance on Constitutional Council Bill

KATHMANDU: The CPN-UML has made a shift in its stance on the Constitutional Council Bill. The UML had been insisting that the Prime Minister should be granted special privileges in the Bill and that important decisions cannot be made in the absence of the Prime Minister.

However, during a meeting with Prime Minister and CPN (Maoist Center) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba, UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli agreed to abandon this position.

The Constitutional Council consists of six members, namely the Prime Minister, Chief Justice, Speaker, National Assembly Chairperson, Deputy Speaker, and Leader of the Main Opposition Party in the House of Representatives. The Prime Minister serves as the chairperson of the council meetings.

Subash Chandra Nembang, the Deputy Leader of UML’s parliamentary party, stated that the three leaders have agreed to amend the Bill by replacing the term ‘Chairperson and Majority’ with ‘Majority with Chairperson’.

Additionally, the three leaders have reached a consensus to establish a sub-committee to address the transitional justice bill. “Since the bill has already been sent to a thematic committee for clause-wise discussion, we have decided to expedite the process by forming a sub-committee,” he added.

Previously, the leaders had agreed to form a special committee to facilitate discussions on the transitional justice bill.

Furthermore, the three leaders have agreed to assign UML leadership in three parliamentary committees, including the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and the State Direction, Principle Rules, and Responsibility Committee.