KATHMANDU: One year after forming a seven-party coalition government, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has initiated talks to reshuffle his Cabinet, holding high-level discussions with coalition leaders at Baluwatar.
PM Oli met Nepali Congress (NC) President Sher Bahadur Deuba to discuss restructuring the Cabinet by replacing all ministers representing coalition partners.
According to sources, the meeting also included senior NC leaders Purna Bahadur Khadka and Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak. On the UML side, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel, Deputy General Secretary Bishnu Rimal, and Attorney General Ramesh Badal were present.
While PM Oli is reportedly eager to make sweeping changes, including replacing ministers implicated in controversy, Nepali Congress appears reluctant. Insiders say the party is hesitant to act amid ongoing internal rifts, fearing that reshuffling ministers could trigger further infighting, especially between Deuba and rival faction leader Shekhar Koirala.
Despite the caution, conversations within the NC suggest that Foreign Minister Dr. Arzu Rana and Home Minister Lekhak are likely to retain their positions, while other ministers may be recalled.
Meanwhile, coalition members Loktantrik Samajwadi Party (LSP) and Janata Samajwadi Party (JSP) have also initiated plans to replace their ministers. The Ashok Rai-led JSP, which currently holds two ministries, Pradeep Yadav at Drinking Water and Nawal Kishor Sah Sudi at Women, Children, and Senior Citizens, is reportedly preparing to recall both.
Party insiders suggest Dr. Birendra Prasad Mahato, currently the party’s chief whip, and Ranju Jha could be nominated to fill the positions.
Similarly, LSP chair Mahantha Thakur is pushing to replace long-serving Labour Minister Sharat Singh Bhandari, who has held ministerial office 22 times, with senior party figure Sarbendra Nath Shukla. Thakur’s office confirmed that he has already discussed the proposal with Prime Minister Oli and plans to formally submit Shukla’s name to Baluwatar soon.
Despite these developments, uncertainty continues to cloud the reshuffle. Nepali Congress is particularly cautious, with leaders at Budhanilkantha worried that any move could intensify factional rivalries. No final decision has yet been made regarding which ministers will stay or go.
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