Kathmandu, June 25: A rift among Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC) officials over the approval of the Kathmandu Tower blueprint has stalled the city’s budget presentation for fiscal year 2082/83 (2025–26), missing the constitutional deadline of Asar 10 (June 24).
The deadlock stems from an ongoing power struggle between Mayor Balen Shah and Deputy Mayor Sunita Dangol, triggered by controversy over the tower's design approval. In past years, KMC had consistently tabled its budget by the legal deadline.
KMC spokesperson Nabin Manandhar confirmed Tuesday that the budget won’t be presented as scheduled. “Due to incomplete internal preparations, the budget is not ready,” he said.
The municipal executive, which decides on convening the city assembly, hasn’t met since last Poush (Dec/Jan). The deadlock deepened when Mayor Balen suspended Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Saroj Guraagai, accusing him of irregularities in the tower’s approval. But the federal government reinstated Guraagai instead of appointing a replacement, escalating the standoff.
Mayor Balen has refused to work with the reinstated CAO, while Deputy Mayor Dangol insists on Guraagai’s involvement in all meetings. Their conflicting positions have stalled the executive meeting and, by extension, the budget process.
On Asar 4 (June 18), Mayor Balen called a meeting of the Resource Estimation and Budget Limit Committee but bypassed Guraagai, who serves as the committee's secretary. The deputy mayor and her allies boycotted the session, rendering the meeting defunct. The committee includes Dangol, Manandhar, Nawaraj Parajuli, Maiyalakshmi Maharjan, and Anita Karki Doli.
Manandhar said discussions are ongoing and claimed the delay is procedural. “The budget is ready. It’s just stuck in the process. Once the executive meets, we’ll present it,” he said.
Asked about accountability, he responded, “We all share the blame. No point in finger-pointing.”
Sources say Mayor Balen had delegated budget preparation to the deputy mayor and ward chairs, assuring full support. However, coordination reportedly faltered. Dangol, Manandhar, and ward chairs Ishwar Man Dangol and Nawaraj Parajuli were tasked with securing cross-party consensus for the executive meeting, but internal disagreements stalled progress.