New govt on anvil in Nepal
Kathmandu, March 4: A reshuffle of the cabinet is on the cards in Nepal on Monday with the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre) severing its alliance with its coalition partner Nepali Congress. The chasm has been reportedly widening between the two biggest parties in the Himalayan Kingdom over the claim for chairmanship of the National Assembly. “Government to change today and the new Cabinet will be formed. Swearing in of ministers will also take place today,” Surendra Pandey, Vice Chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (CPN- UML), said in a social media post on Monday. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ will reportedly induct ministers from the CPN-UML, Rashtriya Swatantra Party, and Janata Samajbadi Party apart from the CPN (Maoist Centre). The move comes after Dahal met CPN-UML’s K P Sharma Oli, the former prime minister, on Sunday to discuss a new political alliance following a breakdown in their partnerships in 2020 as well as 2023. (IANS)
Achakzai’s home raided
Karachi, March 4: Ahead of the presidential polls in Pakistan, authorities in Balochistan have raided the house of opposition presidential candidate and veteran politician Mahmood Khan Achakzai in the provincial capital, Quetta, and reclaimed a piece of government-owned land “illegally occupied” by him. Achakzai, 75, from Balochistan, is the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief and was nominated by Imran Khan, the jailed leader of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party to contest against former president Asif Ali Zardari. Authorities in Quetta said they had conducted the raid at Achakzai’s residence on Sunday and reclaimed a piece of government-owned land “illegally occupied” by him. (PTI)
China likely to appoint a new foreign minister
Beijing, March 4: China on Monday scrapped the annual press conference of its Premier, a decades-long scripted event watched live by the people for any new policy formulations for the world’s second-largest economy. Also, speculation is rife that Liu Jianchao, a senior Chinese diplomat currently heading the international department of the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC), may be made the new Foreign Minister during the current session of the National People’s Congress (NPC). The NPC or parliament will hold its annual meeting here from March 5 to March 11, NPC spokesman Lou Qinjian said at a news conference on Monday. Lou, who spoke to the media ahead of the NPC session, in a surprising statement said the practice of the Premier addressing the media at the end of the annual parliament session was discontinued from this year. (PTI)
4 dead, 21 hurt in a nursing home fire
Berlin, March 4: Four people died and at least 21 were injured in a fire at a retirement home in Bedburg-Hau in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia early Monday, German news agency dpa reported. A firefighter and a police officer were also injured and taken to a hospital, police said. In addition to those who were confirmed to be injured, 46 other residents were evacuated and were being examined for possible injuries, dpa reported. The fire, which broke out during the night, has been doused, but firefighters are still working at the scene, it said. The cause of the fire is being investigated. (AP)