According to Rule 15 of the House of Representatives Rules of Procedure, ministers are required to provide answers within seven days to questions raised by members of parliament. This rule mandates that issues raised during zero hour, special sessions, and urgent times must be addressed by the respective ministers within a week in the parliament.
Additionally, the Speaker has the authority to grant additional urgent time if MPs repeatedly request it to draw the government’s attention to serious matters arising between sessions or during inter-session periods.
In Kathmandu, on 8 Baishakh, it is reiterated that ministers must respond to parliamentary questions within seven days. Rule 15 of the House of Representatives’ procedural regulations contains provisions related to zero and special timing. Apart from zero and special times, if MPs repeatedly request time to highlight significant events or matters occurring between the previous and upcoming meetings, the Speaker can allocate urgent time.
The rule explicitly states: “Matters raised during urgent, zero, and special times must be responded to by the concerned minister in the parliament within seven days.”
