Nepal cabinet recommends prorogation of winter session of lower House

The Nepal cabinet on Friday recommended President Ram Chandra Paudel to prorogue the ongoing winter session of the lower House past Sunday midnight. The decision by the cabinet comes ahead of the Nepal Investment Summit, which is set to be held at the end of this month.

The Nepal cabinet on Friday recommended President Ram Chandra Paudel to prorogue the ongoing winter session of the lower House past Sunday midnight. The decision by the cabinet comes ahead of the Nepal Investment Summit, which is set to be held at the end of this month. Dozens of laws are required to be amended if the House is to be prorogued in the winter session.

"The cabinet decided to recommend the President to prorogue the winter session of the lower House past Sunday midnight. After the meeting on Sunday (April 19) commences, the session will be prorogued," Rekha Sharma, the country's minister for Communication, confirmed. The decision to prorogue the ongoing session was taken in the meeting of the Council of Ministers amid continuous interruption by the Opposition Nepali Congress, which demanded the resignation of Home Minister Rabi Lamichhane.

The Nepali Congress, along with two other parties, also raised the demand for a parliamentary probe committee to investigate Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Lamichhane over his alleged involvement in a cooperative scam. Lamichhane denied the allegation while also turning down the demand for a probe committee. Former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli as well as his successor Pushpa Kamal Dahal came out in his support while seconding his decision not to institute a probe panel.

The Nepali Congress has been building pressure on the government to fulfil their demands, resulting in the prorogation of the lower House with vital bills, including those relating to the full-fledged implementation of federalism, which has been waiting for long. Two months into commencement, the House has only endorsed three Bills in the winter session. Nepal is set to host the third edition of the Investment Summit over two days-- on April 28 and 29--in Kathmandu. The summit is aimed at attracting bulk foreign direct investments (FDIs) into several infrastructure projects.

The Investment Board of Nepal has planned to showcase a total of 125 projects, as recommended by consultants and various government agencies. According to the IBN, the government has finalised investments worth Rs301.18 billion in four big projects during the summit. (ANI)

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