Prime Minister Girija Prasad Koirala today administered the oath of office and secrecy to Chief Justice Dilip Kumar Poudel.

Prime Minister GP Koirala administering oath of office and secrecy to Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Dilip Kumar Paudel, according to the recently promulgated interim constitution at Singha Durbar, Thursday, Jan 18 07. nepalnews.com/rh

Prime Minister GP Koirala administering oath of office and secrecy to Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Dilip Kumar Paudel, according to the recently promulgated interim constitution at Singha Durbar, Thursday, Jan 18 07. nepalnews.com/rh
Poudel was sworn in by the Prime Minister amidst a ceremony organised at the National Planning Commission office at Singha Durbar this afternoon.

This was for the first time a Chief Justice has been sworn in by the Prime Minister. With the promulgation of the interim constitution on Monday, all duties and privileges of the head of the state have gone to the Prime Minister.

Talking to reporters after the swearing-in ceremony, CJ Poudel told reporters that he took the oath from the Prime Minister according to constitutional provisions. “I had already made clear that I am ready to take oath [from the Prime Minister] according to the constitution.”

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Koirala has hinted that the Maoists would not be inducted in the government before their arms are fully locked up.

Asked when exactly the Maoists were going to join the interim cabinet, Koirala said, “The current government is also an interim government. The Maoist-included cabinet will be formed in 15-20 days, once the arms storage process is complete.”

As per an eight-party understanding, the Maoists will get five ministerial portfolios, equal to that of the Nepali Congress and CPN (UML), including a senior Deputy Prime Minister.

Maoist parliamentary leader Krishna Bahadur Mahara is all set to become a Deputy Prime Minister in the interim cabinet, it is said.