Minister for Communication and Information Technology Gokul Baskota, who on Monday said that PM KP Sharma Oli issued necessary instructions on different ministry-wise topics during the cabinet meeting held through video conferencing, has now claimed that there was no cabinet meeting that day.
The official Twitter handle of PM Oli on Monday had tweeted confirming that the cabinet meeting was held through telepresence (video conferencing) and had thanked minister and staffers at the PMO for participation in the meeting.
But answering questions raised by lawmakers in the parliament on Thursday Baskota, who has spoken numerous blatant lies in just over a year at the office, claimed that the ministers only had a video conferencing with the PM, and cabinet meeting was not held.
Conducting of the meeting in that manner has been widely criticized with leaders of ruling and opposition parties alike, as well as commoners pointing that the whole process could have been hacked compromising national secrecy and security.
But Minister Baskota argued that the video conference was limited to exchanging pleasantries and blasted the critics for unnecessarily criticizing things that did not even happen in a manner as if the government compromised national sovereignty.
RPP Chairman Kamal Thapa called the cabinet meeting through video conferencing a needless pretension. Spokesperson of the main opposition Nepali Congress (NC) Bishwo Prakash Sharma had asked if it will be okay if the speaker were to operate the House or the chief justice the court from abroad pointing at the precedent of conducting the meeting of executive from abroad by amending the regulations for operation of the government.
The harshest criticism came from standing committee member of the ruling CPN Bhim Rawal who opined that cabinet meeting of a sovereign country cannot be conducted from abroad.
