One and half months after the CPN-UML and the Nepali Congress formed a coalition government at the federal level, leaders from the two parties have reached an agreement with regard to running the Gandaki Province government.

The wrangling between the two parties over power sharing in the provincial government prolonged for over a month as none of the sides showed any flexibility. Eventually, the parties increased the number of ministries from seven to nine to accommodate ministers as per the agreements reached between the two parties.

The Cabinet meeting on Sunday decided to split two ministries: the Ministry of Social Development and Health, and the Ministry of Industry, Tourism, Forests, and Environment.

Then the CPN-UML became ready to join the provincial government led by Surendra Raj Pandey of Nepali Congress. Padma GC, Prakash Bahadur KC, Mitralal Basyal and Krishna Pathak became ministers from the UML. GC is leading the Ministry of Agriculture, Land Management and Cooperative; KC heads Physical Infrastructure and Transport; Basyal has got the portfolio of Industry and Tourism; and Pathak has got the Ministry of Health. Chief Minister Pandey’s party Congress is leading five other ministries.

In the meantime, lawmaker Rajeev Gurung, also known as Dipak Manange, who was minister in the Pandey-led Cabinet, resigned from his ministerial post on Monday.

Manange confirmed his resignation saying that he had no interest to lead the Ministry of Forest.

“I sent my resignation to the chief minister. I am a man of action. What can I do in a ministry that has no power at all?” he told the Post. “The Ministry of Forests and Environment in the province holds no real power. Why should I be there to manage crofton weed and mugwort?”

Meanwhile, the two parties that were at a loggerhead over sharing ministerial portfolios in Koshi government, which is led by Hikmat Karki of CPN-UML, have reached an understanding on power sharing.

As per the understanding, the UML will have a chief minister, four ministers and two ministers of state while the Congress will get four ministers and two ministers of state in the provincial government, according to a senior Congress leader.

Also, the Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba has succeeded in allocating ministerial seats among various factions within his party in the province. According to the leader, in Koshi, two ministers will be from among those loyal to Deuba, and one each from the factions led by Shekhar Koirala and Krishna Prasad Sitaula. Koirala and Sitaula factions will get a minister of state each.