KATHMANDU: The House of Representatives failed to function once again on Wednesday, as opposition parties continued their obstruction over the visit visa scandal involving Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak.
Although the session was initially scheduled for 1:00 pm, it was postponed to 3:115PM in hopes of reaching a consensus among parties.
When the meeting finally began nearly 30 minutes late, it was immediately disrupted by opposition lawmakers who stood up in protest.
Speaker Devraj Ghimire urged all parties to help create an environment conducive to resuming normal parliamentary proceedings.
He also offered to allow party-wise statements. However, opposition lawmakers insisted on their demand for the resignation of Home Minister Lekhak and the formation of an investigative committee into the visa controversy.
Chanting slogans inside the chamber, opposition MPs called for strict action against those implicated in the scandal and refused to sit down even after repeated appeals by the Speaker.
Speaker Ghimire attempted to initiate discussion on the national budget for the upcoming fiscal year, requesting members to participate in an orderly, sequential debate. Nonetheless, opposition members refused to cooperate until their demands were addressed.
Earlier on Wednesday, opposition parties including the main opposition CPN (Maoist Centre) had expressed agreement on the Rastriya Swatantra Party’s (RSP) five-point demand during discussions with the Speaker. While the Maoist Centre showed some flexibility regarding the home minister’s resignation, it maintained a firm stance on launching an investigation.
Meanwhile, the Nepali Congress has remained unwilling to form a parliamentary probe committee, further complicating efforts to resolve the deadlock. As a result, the budget session remains in limbo, with no progress made toward ending the parliamentary stalemate.
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