KATHMANDU: Thirteen contract employees of the Madhesh Provincial Assembly Secretariat have been dismissed under the direction of Deputy Speaker Babita Raut Ishar.  The decision was made on the direction of the seven-party opposition alliance in the provincial assembly.

The alliance had accused the staffers of assisting the then-Speaker, Ram Chandra Mandal, in the lead-up to the motion filed against him for conduct unbecoming of his office.

Deputy Speaker Ishar confirmed the dismissals, stating the contract employees had obstructed opposition lawmakers during the process of registering the no-confidence motion against the Speaker. Raut clarified that the 13 dismissed staff were outside the Speaker’s personal secretariat. “Investigations are underway against four or five others,” she added.

According to Secretariat sources, those dismissed include Ramesh Mandal, the former Speaker’s relative and Chief Personal Secretary, and two Personal Secretaries, Dhirendra Mandal and Satish Sah. Other dismissed contract employees include computer operators, office assistants Deepak Mandal and Bishwanath Yadav, and drivers.

Raut said clarifications have been sought from five permanent civil service employees—ranging from Officer to Under Secretary—who allegedly supported Mandal but could not be dismissed. Those issued clarification notices are Secretary Homnath Pahadi, Under Secretaries Bipin Thakur and Surendra Kumar Karna, Legal Officer Anju Kumari Nyaupane, and Non-Gazetted Officer Bijendra Yadav.

“Contract employees have already been removed, and we have sought clarification from the permanent staff,” Raut said. “We have received their responses; the seven-party alliance will now meet and take further decisions.”

Justifying the actions, Raut stated the employees violated parliamentary discipline and decorum. “The employees who violated parliamentary discipline and decorum and those whom Mandal had appointed and instructed to attack opposition lawmakers have been removed,” she said.

A Hub for Political Appointments
The Provincial Assembly Secretariat has become a known center for recruiting relatives and cadres of political parties.

Not only former Speaker Mandal, leaders affiliated with all major parties—including former Chief Ministers Lalbabu Raut and Saroj Kumar Yadav of JSP Nepal, Satish Kumar Singh of Janamat Party, and the current Chief Minister Saroj Yadav of CPN-UML—have appointed their associates and relatives on a contract basis.

High-ranking provincial officials told Himal Press that Mohammad Fayaj Khan, a close associate of the province’s first Chief Minister Lalbabu Raut, and Lalbabu Yadav, who is close to the second Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav, are still working at the Secretariat.

Lalbabu Yadav was brought into the Secretariat when former Chief Minister Saroj Kumar Yadav was serving as the Speaker. Lalbabu Yadav is also currently a teacher at Parsa Secondary School in Mahottari district. Sources allege he is receiving salaries and benefits from both the provincial and federal governments.

Lalbabu, however, refuted the allegations. “I was a teacher and am still a teacher. I am working here on deputation and receiving a salary from only one source,” he stated. “Deputation has no fixed term, and I am still here because the Provincial Assembly Secretariat needs me.”

Similarly, Deputy Speaker Raut, who was elected from the Janamat Party, has appointed Saraswati Kapar as her Personal Secretary. Saraswati is reportedly the sister-in-law of Janamat Party Vice-Chairman Jayakant Raut. Anil Ishar, an assistant computer operator, is also working on a contract basis under Deputy Speaker Ishar’s quota.

Ramesh Yadav, an associate of the current Chief Minister, Saroj Yadav, is employed as an office assistant. Ramesh entered the Secretariat under the UML quota when Saroj Yadav was the Minister of Physical Infrastructure Development.

Furthermore, Sujit Yadav, the brother of the former Provincial Assembly Secretary Ranjit Yadav, works in the Health Section as an Assistant Health Worker. Secretariat sources also say Mukesh Yadav, a computer operator, and Ajay Thakur and Ajay Mandal, office assistants in the IT section, are close to Ranjit Yadav.

The current Provincial Assembly Secretary, Basu Koirala, is a retired employee who was appointed under the Maoist Centre’s political quota.