By Our Reporter
The budget tabled by Finance Minister Dr. Prakash Sharan Mahat faced criticism not only from the opposition parties but also from the ruling partners. Even a few NC lawmakers, including party general secretary Gagan Kumar Thapa, have criticised the budget.
More aggressive were the CPN (Unified Socialist) and the Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal, the two key ruling parties in the present government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal.
Minister Rajendra Pande and even party chair Madhav Kumar Nepal of the CPN (Unified Socialist) have strongly criticised the budget warning that they would not pass the budget even if the coalition collapses by doing that.
The strong criticism of the budget by the ruling partner prompted PM Dahal to invite the leader Nepal and lawmakers of the CPN (Unified Socialist) to Baluwatar to discuss the issue on Monday.
At the meeting, Prime Minister Dahal urged the leaders of the CPN Unified Socialist not to oppose the budget presented by the government for the upcoming financial year.
During a meeting, Prime Minister Dahal emphasized the importance of unity within the government and that opposing the budget was not appropriate.
Likewise, another component of the ruling coalition, the Janata Samajwadi Party-Nepal, stated that the presented budget had ignored many sectors and could not be passed as it is.
Chairman Upendra Yadav, speaking at a press conference on Thursday last week, stated that improvements in the budget were necessary. He blamed that no discussions were held with the parties that are part of the coalition. “The Madhes region and others have been neglected. It needs to be rectified, the budget cannot be passed as it stands,” said Yadav.
However, as Finance Minister Mahat hinted on Tuesday that no amendment would be made to the budget, and the government prepared to pass it, the two parties had no option but to endorse the budget fearing that the failure of the budget might be ended in forming the new government of the NC and UML excluding the JSP-N and the CPN (Unified Socialist) out of power, which they did not want.
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