During Wednesday’s House of Representatives session, a comment made by opposition party CPN-UML MP Rajendra Kumar Rai towards Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal caused an uproar, resulting in a 15-minute suspension of the meeting. When MP Rai asked the Speaker, “Do you listen or not?” Speaker Aryal responded by urging him to “speak within the bounds of decorum.” Accusing the Speaker of disrespect, Rai prompted Aryal to repeatedly label his remarks as ‘against decorum’ and later order that the comment be removed from the parliamentary record.
A similar incident had occurred earlier on Asar 2 (mid-June) in the House, where Rai and Speaker Aryal engaged in a five-minute exchange at the rostrum. Rai had refused to proceed with the budget bill debate due to the absence of ministers. In a phone interview on Thursday morning, MP Rai stated he had only expressed what was permissible, saying, “I have raised the issue that our rules must be implemented and the parliamentary procedures conducted lawfully.”
Regarding his Wednesday remarks, Rai indicated that his microphone was cut off when he was attempting to moderate his language. “I was saying, ‘Mr. Speaker, do you listen or not? The whole public and civil society are trying to say this,’ when my mic was switched off,” he explained. Speaker Aryal’s personal secretary, Navaraj Pandey, noted that the Speaker cautioned the MP to use language befitting the dignity of his office in relation to the remark about listening.
MP Rai denied harboring any bias against Speaker Aryal and referenced his past experience working with DP Aryal twice within the Council of Ministers. He stated, “Even then, I insisted that without the presence of relevant ministers, how can one proceed in the house according to the rules.” CPN-UML Chief Whip Ain Mahar emphasized the importance of maintaining the dignity and decorum of parliament, adding, “All MPs and the Speaker must uphold the institution’s respect.”
