Kathmandu: Opposition lawmakers, including leaders from the Nepali Congress, have criticized Speaker Dol Prasad Aryal, accusing him of failing to act impartially in parliament.

Speaking at an interaction program organized in Kathmandu on Sunday, Nepali Congress MP Geet Kumar Sendang, Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist–Leninist) MP Sajida Siddiqui Khatun and Communist Party of Nepal MP Parbati Bishwakarma expressed dissatisfaction with the Speaker’s conduct and handling of parliamentary proceedings.

MP Sendang alleged that Speaker Aryal appeared “helpless” before the government and opposition pressure, claiming that he had failed even to direct Prime Minister Balendra Shah to appear in parliament.

She argued that the opposition was not protesting merely for political purposes but was demanding accountability from the government.
“Despite repeated pressure and obstruction in parliament, the Speaker could not even ensure the Prime Minister’s presence in the House,” Sendang said.

Similarly, UML lawmaker Sajida Siddiqui Khatun accused Speaker Aryal of remaining aligned with the ruling Rastriya Swatantra Party instead of functioning as an independent and neutral parliamentary authority.

She stressed that constitutional positions such as Prime Minister, Speaker, Deputy Speaker and ministers should maintain impartiality.
“We were forced to raise our voices because the Speaker could not even bring the Prime Minister to parliament,” Khatun stated.

Meanwhile, CPN lawmaker Parbati Bishwakarma said opposition parties felt there was “bias” in parliamentary functioning and accused the Speaker of failing to remain accountable to the House.

She warned that any activity against the interests of the country and the people would not be accepted by the opposition.
Bishwakarma also raised the issue of women’s political representation and reiterated the need to increase women’s participation in parliament and state structures to 51 percent based on population representation.

The criticism against Speaker Aryal comes amid ongoing tensions in parliament over the repeated absence of Prime Minister Balen from key parliamentary discussions and accountability sessions.