Balendra Shah administration goes fast with ordinances: 13 issued, 2 forwarded in 8 months

The Balendra Shah administration is increasingly relying on ordinances to govern, bypassing the legislature. Since the Rastriya Swatantra Party came to power in March, the government has issued 13 ordinances, while two more ordinances have been recommended to the President for promulgation. The pace has raised questions about the government’s commitment to lawmaking through Parliament.

Ordinances are meant to address situations in which immediate legal action is necessary while Parliament is not in session. Constitutional experts and former parliament officials say that the Shah administration has used the exceptional provision as a routine governing tool, even when there is no apparent emergency. “Only in extremely exceptional circumstances like war, epidemic, or a state of emergency can the government issue an ordinance,” said constitutional expert Bhimarjun Acharya.

“The previous governments followed a wrong practice. A government that has nearly a two-thirds majority is repeating the same thing.”