The non-establishment faction of Nepali Congress led by senior leader Shekhar Koirala is set to send three ministers and one state minister to the cabinet.
In a meeting of the faction held at the liaison office of Koirala in Baluwatar this morning, Koirala said that the faction will send three ministers and one state minister to the cabinet led by Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’.
Koirala, who is also the central member, in the meeting, informed to have reached an agreement with party President Sher Bahadur Deuba that his group would get three ministers and one state minister.
The meeting has entrusted office-bearers to finalize the names of the ministers to be sent to the cabinet.
General Secretary Gagan Thapa and leader Koirala gave a 'briefing' on issues including the cabinet expansion, by-elections, and ongoing elections of Nepal Teachers Association, among others.
Earlier, the non-establishment faction was maintaining that their group should get three ministries out of eight ministries allocated for NC. However, President Deuba was reluctant about it.
A leader says that after Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ agreed to give one more ministry to NC, Deuba also agreed to give three ministries to the Koirala faction.
Currently, Vice President Purna Bahadur Khadka is the Deputy Prime Minister and Defense, Spokesperson Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat is leading the Ministry for Finance, Ramesh Rijal is the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supply while Sita Gurung is leading the Ministry of Urban Development.
All four of them belong to the establishment. Similarly, central members NP Saud and Mohan Bahadur Basnet are being discussed as ministers.
Saud among them is almost certain to become foreign minister.
“NP Saud is almost certain to become foreign minister, Dhanraj Gurung health minister, Dig Bahadur Limbu law minister while Mohan Basnet can lead the Ministry of Sports,” says a leader of the non-establishment faction.
President Deuba on March 31 said that the party had prepared to send leaders Saud and Basnet to the government in the first phase itself.
However, their swearing-in was stopped after the Koirala faction took a stand not to send names until they got three ministries.
From the Koirala faction, Vice President Dhanraj Gurung, Deputy General Secretary Badri Pandey and Jeevan Pariyar, Dig Bahadur Limbu, Surendra Raj Acharya are aspirants for ministership.
Meanwhile, General Secretary Gagan Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma are lobbying to make Pradeep Paudel, the elected MP from Kathmandu-5, a minister.
