Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal is gearing up for a Cabinet reshuffle, but the big question is whether he will replace the entire set of ministers from each coalition partner or just add a few new faces.

To reorganise his Cabinet, the prime minister has already started consulting his alliance partners, specifically the CPN-UML Chairman KP Oli, the CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman Madhav Kumar Nepal, and others.

According to Maoist Centre leaders, as soon as the process of forming a new government in Madhes province concludes, the prime minister will start the process of Cabinet reshuffle.

Over the last couple of days, Dahal, Oli and Nepal have held several rounds of talks in order to give full shape to the provincial government in Sudurpaschim, to form a new government in Madhesh, and bring new parties like the Nagarik Unmukti and Janamat Party into the federal government.

Once a new government is formed in Madhesh, the prime minister is likely to add some ministers from the Nagarik Unmukti Party and Janamat Party, said Mahesh Bartaula, chief whip of the UML. This has been the topic of discussion among the top leaders in the past few days, he said.

“I don’t think the entire Cabinet will change,” he said.

However, according to one Maoist Centre leader, the prime minister is in a difficult situation after the chairman of the CPN (Unified Socialist) Nepal sought a package deal on power-sharing.

Jagannath Khatiwada, spokesperson of the Unified Socialist said his party has communicated its demands clearly to both Dahal and Oli.

“During recent meetings with the prime minister and the UML chief, our chairman made it clear that we need an additional minister in the federal government, a fair share in Koshi, Madhesh and Karnali governments, and participation of the UML and Maoist Centre in the Sudurpaschim government before the formation of the government in Koshi,” he said.

Dirgha Bahadur Sodari of the Unified Socialist is the chief minister in Sudurpaschim, but the delay by the UML and Maoist Centre in joining the government has caused frustration within the Unified Socialist.

In order to extend support for forming a new government in the Madhesh province, which will probably be led by the Janamat Party, the Unified Socialist party has withdrawn its two ministers from the current Saroj Kumar Yadav government. Yadav is the chief minister of the Madhesh province and represents the Janata Samajbadi Party Nepal.

A section of the Maoist Centre has been calling for the replacement of the entire set of ministers in the Dahal Cabinet. But the UML, the Rastriya Swatantra Party and the Unified Socialist are against doing so.

“Some of our ministers have been serving since December 2022, so some leaders in the party want to replace them with new faces,” a central committee member of the Maoist Centre said.

With the exception of Finance Minister Barsha Man Pun, there is a call within the party to replace all the ministers, the leader said, adding that “this agenda will likely be discussed during the upcoming meeting of the party.” Besides the prime minister, the CPN (Maoist Centre) has one deputy prime minister, and four ministers in the Cabinet.

“There are several issues, but nothing has been discussed,” said Govinda Acharya, press adviser to the Prime Minister Dahal. “First, ministers from the Janamat Party and the Nagarik Unmukti Party are likely to join the Cabinet as per the understanding among party leaders.”

“Our position is clear,” said Khatiwada, the Unified Socialist spokesperson. “We want a package deal, which we have clearly communicated both to prime minister Dahal and UML chair Oli.”

“From the centre to the provincial level as well as in other major political appointments, we need a fair share,” said Khatiwada.

He complained that the prime minister and the UML chief assured several times in the past to address the grievances of the Unified Socialist, but the promise has not been kept.

To show his frustration, party chief Nepal participated in a meeting of the opposition parties a few days ago.

“We have decided to help the federal coalition install a new government in the Madhesh province. So we need a fair share in provincial governments in Madhesh, Koshi, Karnali and Sudurpaschim. Cabinet reshuffle is solely the prime minister’s prerogative and he might be feeling pressure from within his own party. He may replace his party’s ministers, but this has not been discussed in the meetings of alliance members,” Khatiwada told the Post.