The Permanent Mission of Nepal to the United Nations in Geneva issued a statement on Monday informing about the Nepalese delegation there to participate in the UN Human Rights Council and the activities in Geneva.
The statement identifies Govinda Prasad Sharma Koirala (Bandi) as a peace and human rights adviser to Prime Minister (PM) Pushpa Kamal Dahal. Bandi is scheduled to address the UNHRC session in that capacity today.
Advisers to the Prime Minister are to be appointed by Cabinet decision, but Bandi does not appear to have been appointed as an adviser to the Prime Minister by the Cabinet until he left for Geneva on Sunday evening. Bimala Rai Paudyal, who was scheduled to lead the Nepalese delegation as foreign minister before Prime Minister Dahal stopped her just before leaving for the airport, told Setopati that she was not aware of Bandi’s appointment as Adviser to Prime Minister Dahal.
“The Cabinet decided to keep him as an expert in the delegation that I would lead. I had not appointed him as an adviser to the prime minister,” he told Setopati Paudyal, who resigned on Monday after the CPN-UML decided to leave the government. “I don’t know if the Cabinet meeting was called after we resigned yesterday and appointed him.”
Prime Minister Dahal’s personal secretary Ramesh Malla also told Setopati that he is not aware of Bandi’s appointment.
Bandi led the Nepalese delegation after Paudyal was prevented from traveling to Geneva on Sunday without any reason.
Prime Minister Dahal clarified on Monday that the visit was halted to ensure he was not removed from the cabinet while heading the Nepalese delegation in Geneva. “When we went to resign, PM said that I was asked not to visit her, not to insult me, but out of fear that she would be in an awkward position if there was an environment for other UML leaders to resign while I was there.” revealed Paudyal.
