Kathmandu: Two opposition parties in the House of Representatives, the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP), have boycotted today’s meeting, demanding the formation of a parliamentary committee to investigate a visit visa scam.
According to National News Agency Nepal, the protest began immediately after Speaker Devraj Ghimire announced the commencement of the meeting. Lawmakers from both parties stood up in protest. In response, Speaker Ghimire allowed RSP lawmaker Manish Jha to express his views. Jha criticized the recent passage of the Civil Service Bill, which included changes to the ‘cooling off period’ provision, describing it as unfortunate.
Jha further claimed that an attempt was being made to form a committee under the coordination of the Nepali Congress, which he stated would be unacceptable to their party. This sentiment was echoed by Deepak Bahadur Singh of the RPP, who demanded a separate parliamentary committee to investigate the visa scam, alleging that officials ranging from the prime minister to lower-level employees were involved.
Singh questioned why a parliamentary committee had not been formed to address this issue, stating that the RPP would continue to boycott the meeting until their demands were met. Following the statements, lawmakers from both the RSP and RPP exited the meeting in protest.