To ensure the smooth conduct of the House of Representatives sessions, opposition parties have stipulated that the Prime Minister must respond to questions raised in parliament. According to the House of Representatives rules, a mandatory provision requires a direct question-and-answer session with the Prime Minister during the first week of each month, which has yet to be enforced in the month of Jestha. Ahead of the House session scheduled for Jestha 12, opposition parties plan to discuss internally and with the Speaker regarding the question-and-answer arrangement with the Prime Minister. (Jestha 10, Kathmandu)
Opposition parties have begun insisting that Prime Minister Balendra Shah answer questions raised in the House to facilitate smoother parliamentary proceedings. Recently, opposition groups have staged protests in the House urging this demand. Despite opposition protests in the last Friday’s session, the House proceedings continued, and amid slogans, the Alternative Development Financing Act was passed.
Additionally, bills concerning the voter registry and the election of members of the House of Representatives are also progressing amid opposition resistance. Since the opposition has consistently obstructed sessions, the meetings have continued amidst disruptions, prompting the chief whip representatives of opposition parties to hold discussions on Sunday. The meeting, held at the UML parliamentary party office in Singha Durbar, was attended by Nepali Congress chief whip Basana Thapa, UML chief whip Ain Mahar, Nepal Communist Party chief whip Yubaraj Dulal, and Rastriya Prajatantra Party chief whip Khushbu Oli.
The next House of Representatives session is scheduled for Jestha 12, where opposition parties are preparing to conduct a question-and-answer session with the Prime Minister. Rastriya Prajatantra Party chief whip Khushbu Oli stated, “This is not a coalition issue. Today’s discussion was informal. Now, discussions will take place within our respective parties, and a decision on the course of action for the 12th will be made.” She explained that the chief whips’ discussions focused on ways to strengthen parliamentary roles. She added, “We will seek further information from the Speaker regarding the conduct of direct question-and-answer sessions with the Prime Minister.”
Rule 56 of the House of Representatives’ procedural rules addresses this matter, stating, “The Speaker shall allocate the first one hour of one day in the first week of each month for questions to the Prime Minister or on matters directly related to their area of responsibility.” This is a mandatory provision, and if no such session occurs on the designated day, it must be conducted at the next meeting. According to sub-rule 1 of Rule 56, “If the meeting cannot be held on the specified day for any reason, the first hour of the next meeting shall be reserved for this purpose immediately.” However, this provision could not be implemented in the current month of Jestha. House sessions have been ongoing since Jestha 4, but a direct question-and-answer session with the Prime Minister has not yet occurred.
