DHANGADHI, July 16: A bitter budget dispute has plunged the Sudurpaschim Provincial Government into a fresh political crisis, with Chief Minister Kamal Bahadur Shah dismissing four ministers from coalition partner CPN-UML, prompting the party to withdraw its support from the government.
The move has brought an end to the 25-month-long alliance between the ruling Nepali Congress (NC) and UML, leaving the Shah-led government in the minority.
The fallout came after UML lawmakers refused to back the provincial budget and registered a proposal seeking expenditure cuts, demanding that the fiscal year 2026/27 budget be rewritten.
In an attempt to resolve the standoff, Chief Minister Shah travelled to Kathmandu on Monday and held talks with NC President Gagan Thapa, Vice President Bishwa Prakash Sharma and other senior party leaders. However, efforts at the central level failed to yield a breakthrough.
Upon returning to Dhangadhi on Wednesday morning, Shah summoned UML ministers and asked them to either resign from the government or support the budget. As the meeting ended without a resolution, Shah dismissed three ministers and one state minister representing UML.
Those removed from office are Minister for Physical Infrastructure Development Surendra Pal, Minister for Land Management, Agriculture and Cooperatives Bir Bahadur Thapa, Minister for Internal Affairs and Law Hira Sarki, and State Minister for Physical Infrastructure Development Nirmala Saud. Shah has taken charge of the ministries left vacant following the dismissals.
UML pulls support, accuses Shah of budget bias
Hours after its ministers were dismissed, UML announced its decision to withdraw support to the provincial government, effective Wednesday evening.
UML Sudurpaschim Parliamentary Party Leader Rajendra Singh Rawal said the decision was taken by the party’s parliamentary meeting.
Rawal accused Chief Minister Shah of allocating around Rs 5.5 billion from the budget to his own electoral constituency unilaterally. He claimed Shah dismissed UML ministers after becoming a minority even within his own party.
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He also accused the chief minister of ignoring repeated calls for revisions to a budget that, according to him, was introduced against established norms and values.
Budget controversy triggers political crisis
The latest crisis comes just a month after Shah managed to avert an internal crisis within his own party by reshuffling ministers following a signature campaign by a majority of NC lawmakers.
However, he has now found himself in another political crisis after failing to settle differences with coalition partner UML over the budget.
Economic Affairs Minister Bikram Singh Dhami presented the provincial government’s budget at midnight on June 15. The budget was tabled in the Provincial Assembly only three weeks later.
The budget has drawn criticism from ruling party lawmakers, opposition parties and the public, with allegations that projects were traded through commissions ranging from 20 to 30 percent, that allocations were heavily concentrated in the constituencies and districts of the chief minister and ministers, and that funds were distributed unevenly through middlemen.
As the dispute threatened the survival of the government, NC General Secretary Pradip Paudel and UML Account Commission Chairman Dr Pushpa Kandel reached Dhangadhi as representatives of their parties’ central leadership for talks. However, their intervention failed to break the deadlock.
Six UML provincial lawmakers had registered a proposal seeking expenditure cuts and demanded that the budget be rewritten. The dispute deepened after they refused to withdraw the proposal. Nepali Communist Party Sudurpaschim Parliamentary Party Leader Khag Raj Bhatta had also registered a budget cut proposal.
A source close to Chief Minister Shah said he decided to dismiss UML ministers after central-level discussions also failed to resolve the dispute.
The provincial government had presented a budget of Rs 37.70 billion for fiscal year 2026/27 through Economic Affairs Minister Dhami.
Parties begin efforts for new power equation
Following UML’s withdrawal of support, political parties in the province have intensified discussions to explore a new power equation.
Chief Minister Shah said efforts were underway to resolve the crisis triggered by the budget in line with the constitution and law, while dialogue with other political parties was continuing.
Before the breakdown, the provincial government was being run through an NC-UML coalition. The NC had Chief Minister Shah, the Economic Affairs Minister, three ministers and two state ministers, while UML had three ministers and one state minister.
A month ago, Shah had recalled NC ministers and appointed five new ministers to resolve an internal dispute within the party. At the time, Shah and Dev Singh Bista had reached an agreement over the distribution of ministries.
Meanwhile, UML had also prepared to recall its ministers and send new faces to the provincial government. The reshuffle, however, was halted after UML Chair KP Sharma Oli instructed the party through a telephone call not to change ministers immediately.
Shah’s second stint faces another test
Shah first became chief minister on February 9, 2023. He resigned on April 4, 2024, after his government fell into a minority following a shift in the political equation at the centre.
Following his resignation, then CPN (Unified Socialist) leader Dirgha Bahadur Sodari became chief minister on April 18, 2024. He stepped down on August 2, 2024, after UML withdrew its support.
Shah returned as chief minister for a second term on August 4, 2024, with UML’s backing. However, with UML again pulling out of the government, his administration has once again landed in uncertainty.
Four governments in three and a half years
No party secured a clear majority in the Sudurpaschim Provincial Assembly election held on November 20, 2022.
After the election, UML Parliamentary Party Leader Rajendra Singh Rawal became the first chief minister on January 11, 2023, after securing support from 29 lawmakers in the 53-member assembly. His government, however, collapsed after he failed to win a vote of confidence.
Under Article 168(3) of the Constitution, NC Parliamentary Party Leader Kamal Bahadur Shah was appointed chief minister on February 9, 2023, as the leader of the largest party in the assembly. He resigned on April 4, 2024, after losing majority support.
Following Shah’s resignation, CPN (Unified Socialist) leader Dirgha Bahadur Sodari became chief minister on April 18, 2024. His government lasted only three months before he resigned on August 2 after UML withdrew support.
Shah was then appointed chief minister for the second time on August 4, 2024, with UML’s support. With UML once again withdrawing support, Sudurpaschim’s political landscape has entered another phase of uncertainty.
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