Parliament session begins without Prime Minister Balen Shah

Kathmandu. The discussion on the government's annual policy and program in the House of Representatives has started in the absence of Prime Minister Balen Shah. The discussion on the government's policy and program presented by President Ram Chandra Paudel in the joint session of Parliament began on Thursday. The policy and program were tabled by Finance Minister Dr. Swarnim Wagle on Wednesday. However, the opposition parties had demanded that the Prime Minister should be present and answer questions during the discussion on the policy and program. Due to the same demand, Wednesday's meeting could not proceed. Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal had stated that he would talk to the Prime Minister on Wednesday evening. However, even on Thursday, the Prime Minister did not attend the House of Representatives meeting, and the discussion started in his absence. The opposition has submitted 35 amendment proposals to the policy and program. The discussion on the policy and program is scheduled to be completed today and the answer will be given. Before the discussion on the policy and program began, MPs from the opposition parties reiterated their demand for the Prime Minister's presence in Thursday's meeting. Congress's Miskal Rai, UML's Ain Mahar, RPP's Khusbu Oli, and CPN's Yuvraj Dulal questioned what governance system the government was adopting, accusing the Prime Minister of ignoring Parliament.