By Our Reporter

The two-thirds majority government of the UML and Nepali Congress, which was said to be formed to amend the constitution to ensure political stability in the country in mid-July last year, has finally accomplished its silly goal of sacking Kulman Ghising from the post of the Managing Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA).  However, the government led by UML chairman KP Sharma had to exercise for eight and a half months to remove Ghising.

The growing enmity between Ghising and Energy Minister Dipak Khadka culminated in the sacking. PM Oli had wanted to remove Ghising for long. 

A meeting of the Council of Ministers on Monday decided to appoint Hitendra Dev Shakya to the post of the Executive Director of the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) by sacking Ghising.

Surprisingly, government spokesperson and Minister for Communication and Information Technology Prithvi Subba Gurung did not dare to disclose the utterly unpopular government decision of the government to remove Ghising while briefing the media about the Cabinet decisions on Monday night.  However, he disclosed the same in another press meet on Tuesday afternoon.

It was Minister for Land Management and Cooperatives, Balram Adhikari, who shared the decision with the media on Monday.

Prime Minister Oli and controversial Energy Minister Khadka were exercising for months to sack Ghising. However, due to opposition from the NC, particularly Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak and two party general secretaries—Gagan Kumar Thapa and Bishwa Prakash Sharma—they were unable to take any decision against Ghising.  Thapa and Sharma have criticised the removal of Ghising.

The unpopular decision was sure to be counter-productive to the Oli-led government as the public has strongly opposed the removal of Ghising, who many believe managed to free the country from the load-shedding, in social sites.  The people demonstrated in Kathmandu against the decision. The government may also not be able to face the parliament after it decides to remove Ghising. It may not be a surprise if the government prorogue the winter session without holding another meeting to avoid backlash.

Shakya had previously been appointed as the Executive Director by the Oli-led government as well. Shakya, the former senior employee of the NEA, received compulsory retirement on February 8, 2025.

On November 8, 2020, Shakya was appointed as the Acting Executive Director of the Authority. Later, on February 11, 2021, the Council of Ministers officially appointed him as the Executive Director.

Later, the government led by Sher Bahadur Deuba dismissed Shakya and Kulman Ghising was reinstated as the Executive Director.

Challenging this decision, Shakya filed a petition in the Supreme Court on August 17, 2021, but no verdict has been given even after his retirement.

Ghising was appointed to the post for the second time on August 9, 2021. His four-year tenure was to end on August 8, 2025. However, the government removed him when only four months were left to end his term.

Now after removing Ghising, Kathmandu Mayor Balendra Shah is the another target of PM Oli. The government has not sent a new executive officer to Kathmandu Metropolitan City for three months and KMC has been unable to pay its employees, teachers and others.   Mayor Balen has already threatened the government.

If the supporters of Balen and Ghising take to the streets, the government may not be able to bear the pressure. Moreover, the government axed Ghising at a time when the pro-monarchy groups are preparing to launch their protest to reinstate the monarchy. Considering, this the removal of Ghising could be costly for the government, particularly, Prime Minister Oli.