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The economic survey is being presented at the meeting of the House of Representatives (HoR) today.

Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel is scheduled to present the economic survey for the fiscal year, 2025/26 in the Parliament meeting, according to the Federal Parliament Secretariat.

The HoR is meeting at 11 am.

As per schedule, related ministers will be furnishing responses to the lawmakers' queries relating to culture, tourism and civil aviation; energy and irrigation; and forest and environment.

Minister for Women, Children and Senior Citizens Nawal Kishor Saha Sudi is tabling the bill on child rights (first amendment), 2082.

Minister for Education, Science and Technology Raghuji Panta will be tabling a proposal, seeking consideration on a bill relating to Tilganga Eye University, 2081.

General Secretary at Parliament Secretariat Padma Prasad Pandey shared this information.

The budget session of the Federal Parliament is beginning today.

President Ram Chandra Paudel had summoned the meeting at the recommendation of the Council of Ministers. The meeting will be held at 1 pm today.  

As per the business schedule released by the Federal Parliament Secretariat, the Speaker of House of Representatives (HoR), Devraj Ghimire, would inform the House about the budget session summoned by the President and the reshuffle in the cabinet.

Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel is scheduled to table a proposal on Principle and Priorities of Appropriation Bill for discussions.

Leaders of different political parties would be given time on the basis of their parties for deliberations on the first day today.

Likewise, the Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli's personal secretariat shared that the UML's parliamentary party leader and PM Oli would address the House today.  

Government's policy and programs, and annual budget for the upcoming fiscal year would be tabled in this session of the Federal Parliament.

Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli is scheduled to present the 'Bill to amend certain Nepal Acts relating to the Promotion of Good Governance and Delivery of Public Services, 2081' in a meeting of the House of Representatives today.

According to the tentative agenda published by the Parliament Secretariat, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel is scheduled to present the 'Bill to amend certain Nepal Acts relating to Improving the Economic and Business Environment and Promoting Investment, 2081', the 'Economic Procedure and Fiscal Responsibility (First Amendment) Bill, 2081' and 'Privatization (First Amendment) Bill, 2081'.

Similarly, Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation Balaram Adhikari will present the 'Bill to Amend Some Nepal Acts relating to the Cooperatives, 2081 BS'.

Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak will propose to send the 'Armed Police Force, Nepal Bill, 2081 BS' to the concerned committee for clause-wise discussion.

President Ram Chandra Paudel has stressed on the need of strengthening federalism, good governance and the rule of law. 

For this, the President said, the Parliament should play an effective role to make the government responsible and accountable to the people.

"It is your responsibility to make the role of Parliament more effective to make the government responsible and accountable to the people to strengthen federalism, good governance and rule of law," the Head of State said at a program organized at the Office of the President today for handing over the Pokhara Declaration of the Inter-Parliamentary Forum.

President Paudel suggested to the government and the Parliament to develop the Parliament as a place where the voice of the sovereign people can be voiced in the context of complaints being made public that some important constructions have been delayed and there is not enough discussion in Parliament on issues of public concern.

"I expect additional readiness from you to build an efficient, accountable and people-responsive Parliament in the days to come, embracing the opportunity to learn from parliamentary practices," he said.

According to the President's Private Secretariat, the President on the occasion stated that Parliament should position itself as a place for effective law making, budget formulation, policy formulation and raising the voice of the people.

The President was of the view that the federal parliament should create an inclusive, long-term and development-friendly legal framework.

"Law-making and transparency are beautiful aspects of the democratic system. Therefore, your cooperation is essential for the successful implementation of federalism by further strengthening the role of parliament," he reiterated.

The Winter session of the Federal Parliament is convening at 1 pm today. This session is also called the 'bill session' as it will mainly focus on deliberation and endorsement of important bills, besides other regular business. 

Top leaders of the political parties, including Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, are scheduled to address the opening meeting of the session today.

As per the preliminary meeting agenda of both houses of Parliament shared by the Federal Parliament Secretariat, Speaker Devraj Ghimire will nominate members to preside over the meetings in accordance with the Rile 10 of the House of Representatives Regulations, 2079 BS.

Prime Minister Oli is scheduled to table the Ordinance Amending Some Nepal Acts Related to Promotion of Good Governance and Public Service Delivery, 2081 BS in the meeting today.

Similarly, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel will present in the Parliament meeting today the Economic Procedures and Financial Responsibility (First Amendment) Ordinance, 2081 BS, the Privatization (First Amendment) Ordinance, 2081 BS, and the Ordinance Amending Some Nepal Acts Related to Improvement of Economic and Business Environment and Investment Promotion, 2081 BS.

Minister for Land Management, Cooperatives and Poverty Alleviation, Balaram Adhikari, will present the 'Ordinance to Amend Some Nepal Acts related to Cooperatives, 2081BS' and the 'Ordinance to Amend Some Nepal Acts related to Land, 2081 BS'.

Likewise, the ordinances, including the ordinance to amend some Nepal Acts related to the promotion of good governance and public service delivery, to be presented in the House of Representatives meeting today, will also be tabled in the meeting of the National Assembly.

According to the agenda, PM Oli will present the Ordinance Amending Some Nepal Acts Related to the Promotion of Good Governance and Public Service Delivery, 2081 BS in the National Assembly meeting.

President of the Legislation Management Committee Tulasa Kumari Dahal will present the committee's reports on the Media Council Bill, 2080 BS and the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Bill, 2081 BS in the meeting.

Article 93(1) of the Constitution of Nepal, 2015 states that the interval between the two consecutive sessions of the federal parliament shall not be more than six months. The budget session was prorogued in mid-September 2024, meaning that the deadline for convening the winter session has not passed.

Notwithstanding this provision, the winter session should already have begun in accordance with a prevailing practice of convening the session within three months after the prorogation of the budget session.

With over 20 bills pending, lawmakers have their hands full. The parliament will need ample time for deliberations on each bill and for incorporation of concerns coming from lawmakers as law-making in a democracy is not done at the crack of a whip.

So, what is stopping the government from recommending the President to summon the winter session?

Some existential crisis, fear of criticism or some other factor?  

What’s exactly cooking in the corridors of power?

Media reports point out that the government has some other designs. Rather than stepping up preparations for the session, the two major ruling parties—the CPN-UML and the Nepali Congress—are in talks to introduce an ordinance that will actually ‘facilitate’ the splitting of political parties.

 These dark-room negotiations and delay in convening the session have not gone unnoticed. Speaking at a program of the Federal Parliament Secretariat recently, the Speaker of the House of Representatives expressed dissatisfaction over the delay in convening the session. Describing the government as the child of the parliament, he accused the child of sidestepping, undermining and even boycotting the mother.

Lawmakers from the opposition parties have objected to this style of functioning, accusing the government of seeking to rule through ordinances, ignoring the voices of the people and trying to avoid criticism.

On their part, some ministers and ruling party leaders have conceded that inter-party talks on whether or not to present the bill on splitting of political parties during this session are in progress, indicating that the winter session may convene in about a fortnight.

Summing up, the government should learn some bitter lessons from similar misadventures instead of trying to ‘facilitate’ the split of parties for temporary gains, rule through ordinances and undermine the concerns of the opposition and the people if it indeed wants the polity to stabilize and deliver.

The budget session of the House of Representatives (HoR) and National Assembly (NA) has ended effective from midnight today.

In a HoR meeting this afternoon, Speaker Devraj Ghimire read out a letter received from the Office of the President stating that the current session of the Federal Parliament was concluded.

The Council of Ministers on Sunday recommended the President to end the ongoing session of the Federal Parliament as per Article 93 (2) of the Constitution of Nepal.

In today's HoR meeting, Speaker Ghimire shared the major highlights of the ongoing session of the HoR.  

In this budget session, the 56 meetings of the HoR were held in 53 days and the session continued for 130 days, Speaker Ghimire said.

In this session of the HoR, eight governmental and one non-governmental bills were registered and five of them have been passed from both HoR and NA, while three others are under consideration in parliamentary committees, Ghimire added.

The government has registered a bill to amend the Economic Procedures and Financial Responsibility Act, 2076 BS in the Parliament.

The government has registered the bill in the Parliament to provide enough time for the discussions on the government's policies and programs and the annual budget submission process, to manage the additional financial obligations owed to the government by public bodies outside the budget system and to make the provisions on reducing wasteful expenditures effective.

Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel has registered the bill in Parliament last Friday with the aim of regulating the operation, management and related economic activities of the Federal Reserve Fund and other government funds as well.

The decision of the Council of Ministers on July 1 had given approval to submit the bill to the Parliament. Last January, the government started the process of amending the act through an ordinance, but the ordinance could not be passed by the Parliament within the specified time.

A provision has been added in the bill that the province, local level and public bodies outside the budget system (extra-budgetary) shall be subject to the prevailing laws related to such level or body and keep accounts in accordance with the approval of the Comptroller General's Office.

The National Planning Commission, in coordination with the Ministry of Finance, is going to amend the provision that the projection of the available resources and the limits of the expenditure that can be incurred in the next three years for the purpose of formulating the med-term expenditure structure and the budget and program of the next fiscal year must be completed by the 15th of January of the current fiscal year.

It is mentioned in the bill that the budget ceiling should be prepared by the end of mid-February.

Similarly, the bill states that the report on resource estimation and determination of the expenditure ceiling prepared by the National Resource Estimation Committee coordinated by the National Planning Commission's vice-chairperson should be submitted before the finance minister around February 18.

"The guideline and outline related to budget formulation should be sent to the related ministries, commissions, secretariats or entities within Fagun 7 (around February 18) of the current fiscal year. The guideline and outline should mention the budget ceiling, the outline of the mid-term expenditure structure, including the necessary amount in line with multi-year resource guarantee of the national pride projects, for the formulation of the budget for the next three years and remaining within the resource and expenditure ceiling fixed by the Resource Estimation Committee," reads the bill.

An amendment proposal has also been registered seeking to amend Clause 11 of the main Act. The provision of the finance minister presenting before the Federal Parliament the principles of the budget and programs, and the project or program priorities to be included in the Appropriation Bill at least 15 days before presenting the Bill, is being amended.

According to the provisions of the bill to amend the Economic Procedures and Financial Responsibility Act, the principles and priorities of the budget and programs should be presented before the Federal Parliament three months ahead. The Federal Parliament shall forward within the 15th of Chait any suggestion or directive or any topic to be included or removed on the principle and priorities of the government after completing deliberations in principle on it.

Similarly, the bill has also amended the provision on the deadline for 'budget surrender' to be made to the Ministry of Finance.

The House of Representatives has endorsed the amendments to the transitional justice-related law of 2014. This marks a significant step forward in healing the wounds of the nation’s decade-long armed conflict. Nearly two decades after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) between the government and the Maoist rebels, the consensus among parties on this crucial law offers hope for thousands of conflict victims, who have been awaiting justice for a long time.

Now that the bill has been passed, the hard work of implementation has begun. The formation of two independent, powerful and well-resourced commissions—Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Commission of Investigation on Enforced Disappeared Persons—will be crucial to the success of this process. The two commissions must have the authority and means to thoroughly investigate human rights violations, establish the truth about past atrocities and recommend appropriate measures for justice and reconciliation.

Nepal’s post-conflict journey has been fraught with challenges. The first justice-related law brought in 2014 courted controversy due to provisions allowing blanket amnesty for serious human rights violations. The Supreme Court’s order for amendments to align the law with international standards led to delay and political maneuvering for years. After a long delay, the government led by then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal registered a bill to amend the 2014 law in parliament in March last year. The three major parties—Nepali Congress (NC), CPN-UML and CPN (Maoist Center) - then formed a three-member task force to iron out their differences. The task force broke the deadlock last week and paved the way for this legislative breakthrough.

The bill addresses some of the most contentious issues. Arbitrary and cruel killings have now been defined as serious cases of human rights violations. Additionally, the bill allows for reduced sentences of 70-75 percent in certain cases on the recommendation of the Attorney-General. These changes represent a balance between the call for justice and the practical considerations of national reconciliation. As the bill moves to the National Assembly and awaits presidential approval, it is crucial to ensure that the process does not stop here. The legislative process moved ahead even though the ruling coalition and government changed during the period.  Parties need to be lauded for this. However, continuous efforts must be made to engage conflict victims and ensure that their voices are heard and their needs addressed throughout the justice process.

The passage of this bill is not an end but a beginning. Its success hinges on the commitment of all stakeholders to confront the past, provide justice where due and forge a path toward national healing.

Bangladesh's parliament was dissolved on Tuesday, the president's office said in a statement, a day after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country following violent protests demanding her ouster, Reuters reported.

The announcement came hours after protesting student leaders set a deadline to dissolve parliament and warned a "strict programme" would be launched if their deadline is not met.

In an apparant case of suicide, a Nepal Police constable, who was deployed for the security of Parliament building in New Baneshwor, shot himself dead on Wednesday.

A police source said that Ajit Gole (22) shot himself in the head with his service rifle while he was on duty at around 8 am today.

Gole, who was deployed at gate number 2 of the western gate of Parliament building, died on the spot.

Kathmandu Police Range SP Nawaraj Adhikari said that Gole, who was on duty since 6 am, was found dead in the toilet at around 8:15 am.

He was a permanent resident of Melung Rural Municipality-4, Dolakha.

The government is unveiling the budget for the fiscal year, 2081/82 BS today.

Finance Minister Barshaman Pun is scheduled to present the budget in the joint meeting of the federal Parliament at 1 pm today.

He is presenting the details on estimated annual spending and revenue, according to the Parliament Secretariat.

As per Article 119 of Constitution of Nepal, 2072, the government is obliged to present the annual budget in the joint meeting of the federal Parliament.

Economic Survey for the fiscal year 2023/24 has been tabled in the Parliament meeting on Sunday.

Finance Minister Barshaman Pun on behalf of the government tabled the Economic Survey in the meeting of the House of Representatives this afternoon.

The main opposition Nepali Congress lawmakers stood from their respective seats and picketed the well soon after Speaker Devraj Ghimire gave time to Finance Minister Pun to table the Economic Survey. Later, marshals took Minister Pun to the rostrum.

Lawmakers of the opposition parties including the Nepali Congress have been chanting slogans demanding formation of a parliamentary probe committee to investigate fraud charges against Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane.

Finance Minister Pun tabled the Economic Survey amidst protest from the opposition parties.

The policies and programs for the upcoming fiscal year 2024/25 have been tabled in the meeting of the House of Representatives on Tuesday.

Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal tabled the policies and programs in the meeting of the Legislature-Parliament this afternoon amidst protests from the opposition parties.

President Ram Chandra Paudel had presented the government’s policies and programs on May 14.

Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced that the motion of thanks to the President for presenting the government’s policies and programs was endorsed by majority amid sloganeering.

A time has been fixed to discuss the policies and programs.

Lawmakers have been notified to note down their names to take part in the discussions.

In the meeting, Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane had presented a proposal to withdraw the ‘Ordinance on Political Parties (Second Amendment)-2080’.

Speaker Ghimire announced that the proposal was endorsed by a majority.

On the occasion, Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies Damodar Bhandari presented an ordinance amending some Nepal acts related to investment facilitation.

The next meeting of the House of Representatives will be held on Friday.

Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane said that he should be allowed to speak in the Parliament about the allegations leveled against him by the main opposition Nepali Congress.

He held a discussion with Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and CPN-UML Chairman KP Sharma Oli on this issue in Singha Durbar this afternoon.

Saying that all have the rights to speak in democracy, Lamichhane said that he should be allowed to clarify about the allegations leveled against him in the Parliament.

The Home Minister said that he would respect the rights of the Congress to protest if it is not satisfied with his answers.

Lamichhane said that he has no other demand than to allow him to speak in the Parliament.

The Congress has been obstructing the Parliament demanding formation of a parliamentary probe committee to investigate fraud charges against Lamichhane.

The budget session of the House of Representatives and National Assembly under the federal Parliament will start from today.

The budget session is commencing today after President Ramchandra Paudel, in accordance with the Article 93 (1) of the Nepal Constitution, summoned the joint session of the federal Parliament on May 2 on the recommendation of the Council of Ministers.

It may be noted that the federal Parliament secretariat had already issued a notice requesting all members of the Parliament to attend the session called for 2 pm today at New-Baneswor based International Conference Center.

According to the constitutional provision, an estimated details of income and expenditure (budget) for the upcoming year has to be presented in the Parliament on May 28 (Jestha 15).

Earlier to this, the President will read out the government's annual policies and programs in the joint meeting of both the Houses.

In order to run the session effectively, Speaker Devraj Ghimire had already held discussions with top leaders of major political parties represented in the Parliament.