Nepal: Home Minister Thapa relieved from Upper House, to continue as Minister for 6 months

Nepal's Home Minister Ram Bahadur Thapa has lost his seat at National Assembly or Upper House after his party CPN-Moist Centre decided to remove him. Despite the action taken by the party against Thapa, he can continue his ministership for six months.

Issuing a notice on Sunday morning, the Parliament Secretariat stated that Thapa has been relieved from the post on the recommendation of his party, CPN-Maoist Centre. Despite losing his seat in the Upper House, Thapa can continue his ministership for another 6 months as per the constitutional provisions.

Article 78 of the Constitution of Nepal-2072 allows a person who is not a member of the Federal Parliament to become a Minister but she or he must become a federal lawmaker within six months from the date of taking an oath to office.

"He (Ram Bahadur Thapa) will take an oath to office at 5 pm today. Communication has been made with the Office of President about his reinstatement as Home Minister," Surya Thapa, Press Advisor to PM KP Sharma Oli confirmed over the phone.

Thapa was earlier appointed as Member of Upper House from Maoist Centre and has got a term of 6 years to continue in the Upper House in a lucky draw held three years before. CPN- Maoist Centre, on April 9 had written to Parliament Secretariat about action taken by the party against Thapa for abandoning the party.

The decision from the Supreme Court to revive CPN-UML (Communist Party of Nepal- Unified Marxist Leninist) and CPN-MC (Communist Party of Nepal- Maoist Center) after scrapping the Nepal Communist Party faltered the unification of Nepal's largest Communist Party.

Soon after the decision of the Supreme Court which came in less than two weeks after the restoration of the Lower House dissolved by Oli, CPN-Maoist Centre had called back its members. Thapa along with the other 4 ministers at that time decided not to return back to the party.

Top leaders Bahadur Rayamajhi, Lekhraj Bhatta, Prabhu Sah and Gaurishankar Chaudhary were suspended earlier by the party and have been abandoned by their party- the CPN-Maoist Center. All the four ministers who lost their seats in either of the Upper or Lower House took an oath to the office on the same day after being relieved by their party.

( With inputs from ANI )