KATHMANDU, June 25: The government appears reluctant to advance with important bills in Parliament, citing continued disruption of House proceedings. Since the next session starting on June 28 will follow a new schedule, there are signs that crucial bills may not be included for discussion. While the government has informally conveyed this intention, no official statement has been made to the Speaker.
After the Appropriation Bill for Fiscal Year 2025/26 was passed on Tuesday, the government is preparing to endorse dependent bills on Saturday. However, apart from budget-related legislation, the government seems unwilling to table other bills during the disruption, a source said.
During Wednesday’s meeting of the State Affairs and Good Governance Committee, Maoist Centre Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal accused the government of trying to block crucial bills like the Federal Civil Service Bill. “Even after discussion and approval in committee, the bill was removed from the parliamentary agenda. That is worrying,” he said.
Recently, the Federal Civil Service Bill has been frequently included and removed from the agenda. The School Education Bill is also stuck in the Education, Health, and Information Technology Committee.
Dahal said his party is ready to be flexible to pass the Civil Service and School Education Bills, but expressed concern over the constant delay. “We’ve drawn the government’s attention, asking not to delay or tamper with the process,” he said.
The Parliament Secretariat is preparing a draft schedule based on the importance of bills. But since the government hasn’t made any final decisions, it remains uncertain how the House will proceed from June 29 to the end of the month. The Speaker is expected to call a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee to discuss this.
The Secretariat says the Parliament does have legislative business to continue, but the boycott by the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) with 21 seats (one suspended) and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) with 14 seats, is larger than the main opposition Maoist Centre’s 35 seats. “So there's a belief that these parties can’t be completely sidelined,” an official said.
The agenda up to mid-June has been finalized. Along with dependent bills, the Citizenship (Second Amendment) Bill 2081 was also included. Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak told the committee on Wednesday that it would be passed on Saturday. However, sources say the bill might be removed from the agenda.
PM KP Oli did not clarify when the Federal Civil Service Bill or School Education Bill would pass. “The Education Bill will come soon and be passed immediately,” Oli said, “The same goes for the Civil Service Bill.”
He added that the Education Committee is working to table its report before June 29. But Parliamentary Secretariat officials doubt this will happen on time.
Two major bills — the Federal Civil Service Bill 2080 and Citizenship (Second Amendment) Bill 2081 — are pending for passage in the House. Other significant bills remain stuck in committees. The Federal Civil Service Bill, tabled on Asar 1, was originally scheduled for passage on June 17.
In the committee meeting, ministers had agreed on key provisions like a two-year cooling-off period after resignation or retirement before former civil servants can be appointed to constitutional or government offices. They also agreed to set the retirement age at 58 this year, and 59 or 60 in coming years. Despite this, the bill couldn’t make it to the House on June 17. It was again scheduled for June 19 but wasn’t passed.
The Chief Secretary and other top bureaucrats have opposed the cooling-off period and are pressuring the government to remove it.
Given the deadlock, officials at the Parliament Secretariat suspect the government is using the disruption as an excuse to stall important legislation.
Parliament has been stalled since May 27 over the “visit visa scam” controversy. The main opposition Maoist Centre, along with RSP and RPP, had blocked the House. On June 13, after a two-point agreement with the ruling coalition, the Maoist Centre resumed participation, but RSP and RPP continued their boycott. RSP has chosen to surround the Parliament bell and walk out, while RPP has only been boycotting the session. They demand an independent investigation committee and the resignation of the Home Minister.