Speaker orders PM Balendra Shah to attend Parliament and answer lawmakers

Kathmandu, August 18, 2026 — Prime Minister Balendra Shah has been directed to attend the House of Representatives and answer lawmakers’ questions after repeatedly failing to appear for the monthly question-and-answer session required by parliamentary rules.

Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal issued the ruling on Monday, saying lawmakers had repeatedly raised concerns over the prime minister’s absence and that the matter had come to his attention.

“Members of parliament have been raising this issue for a long time, and it has come to my attention,” Aryal said before directing Shah to attend the House and respond to questions in accordance with the House of Representatives Regulations, 2026.

Under the arrangement announced by the Speaker, every parliamentary party will be guaranteed at least one question during the direct question-and-answer session. A further 15 questions will be selected based on the parties’ numerical strength in the House. Lawmakers can submit written questions to the parliamentary secretariat by 1 pm on Friday.

The latest ruling follows a prolonged dispute over Shah’s participation in parliamentary proceedings. Lawmakers had been pressing him to appear in the House since his first parliamentary appearance on May 31, when he responded to questions about Nepal-India border disputes.

During that session, Shah made a controversial statement claiming that Nepal had also encroached on Indian territory in several places.

“You may find this surprising, but I too only recently learned, after becoming prime minister, that Nepal has encroached on Indian territory in many places, not just India on Nepali territory,” Shah told Parliament.

The statement triggered strong criticism from opposition parties, which demanded that Shah provide evidence, clarify his position and withdraw or correct the remarks in Parliament. Opposition lawmakers also objected to the manner in which Shah appeared during the session, arguing that it did not follow the regular format of the monthly question-and-answer programme.