Newly elected House of Representatives members Mahindra Raya Yadav and Ram Kumar Rai took an oath of office and secrecy on Friday.

Senior-most parliamentarian Pashupati Shumsher Rana administered oath to the CPN (Maoist Centre)’s lawmakers at the Parliament Secretariat in Singha Durbar. They were absent from the oath-taking ceremony at the parliament building in New Baneshwar on Thursday.

Two lawmakers—Prem Ale of CPN (Unified Socialist) and Maya Rai of Nepali Congress—are yet to take the oath, according to the secretariat.

Nepal’s laws make it mandatory for elected lawmakers to take their oaths of office before joining the parliamentary process.

As per Article 88 of the constitution, every member of the parliament should take an oath as provided in law before taking part for the first time in the meeting of the parliament and its committees.

Likewise, Section 75 of the House of Representatives Election Act, 2017 also requires newly elected lawmakers to take an oath of office and secrecy.

As many as 12 political parties and five independent candidates have been elected to the House of Representatives from last month’s polls.

Of them, three parties—Rastriya Swatantra Party, Janamat Party and Nagarik Unmukti Party—made it to the parliament in their first attempt.