Four CPN (Maoist Center) lawmakers who have been expelled from the House of Representatives (HoR) have also lost their ministership.
Speaker Agni Sapkota read the name of the four lawmakers during the House meeting on Thursday stating that they have been expelled by the party.
The party had written for removal of Energy Minister Top Bahadur Rayamajhi, Industry Minister Lekh Raj Bhatta, Labor Minister Gauri Shankar Chaudhary and Urban Development Minister Prabhu Sah to implement the decision of the standing committee meeting pointing that the four are participating in political activities of another party.
"They have also lost their post of minister with expulsion from the House," former speaker and deputy parliamentary party leader of CPN-UML Subash Chandra Nembang told Setopati. "Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli will have to appoint them in accordance to another article of the Constitution for them to become ministers."
The four were ministers as per Article 76(9) of the Constitution.
Constitutional expert and National Assembly member of Nepali Congress (NC) Radheshyam Adhikari also said the four expelled lawmakers will have to be sworn in again to remain ministers.
Article 78 of the Constitution allows a person who is not member of the federal parliament to become minister but the person must become federal lawmaker within six months of taking oath of office.
The four ministers elected on ticket of Maoist Center had decided to join CPN-UML instead of returning to Maoist Center after the Supreme Court on March 7 invalidated unification of the two parties that formed CPN.
