Kathmandu, April 10 – Nepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah appointed two new ministers into his cabinet on Friday, filling previously vacant ministerial positions.
According to the Prime Minister's Secretariat, lawmaker Ramji Yadav has been assigned the portfolio of the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, which had remained vacant following the dismissal of former minister Dipak Kumar Sah, who was embroiled in controversy over the appointment of his wife as a board member of the Health Insurance Board.
Similarly, lawmaker Gauri Kumari Yadav has been appointed as the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Supplies – a portfolio previously held by the Prime Minister himself since the beginning.
The new Labour Minister, Yadav, was elected as a Member of Parliament from the Saptari–2 constituency on a ticket from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP). Likewise, the Industry Minister was elected from the Mahottari–4 constituency in the parliamentary elections held on March 5 as an RSP lawmaker.
Previously, both ministries had been under Prime Minister Shah's direct charge. The newly-appointed ministers are yet to take the oath of office from President Ram Chandra Poudel.
With these appointments, Prime Minister Shah now leads a 16-member cabinet, a relatively smaller size compared to past governments.
Shah formed the cabinet on March 27 as the RSP emerged as the largest party with a nearly two-thirds majority in the House of Representatives.
The sweeping victory of the relatively new political force, established in 2022, propelled former rapper Shah – also the former Mayor of Kathmandu Metropolitan City – as its Prime Ministerial candidate, a move that many believe swayed voters in favour of the RSP.
Since the formation of the new government, the Shah-led administration has launched a series of initiatives aimed at promoting good governance. Its move to investigate former Prime Ministers K P Sharma Oli, Sher Bahadur Deuba and Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' - along with businessmen considered close to these leaders - on money laundering charges, has been widely acclaimed.