The main opposition Nepali Congress obstructed Thursday’s House session demanding that Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli give specifics about “sluggish reconstruction”.

As soon as Parliament proceedings began on Thursday, NC lawmakers walked up to the rostrum saying they won’t let the House function unless PM Oli addressed their concerns. Speaker Onsari Gharti’s call for letting the House discuss the appropriation bill got lost in the din of NC lawmakers’ demand that the PM Oli first clarify before Parliament why the government has failed to expedite reconstruction and rehabilitation works.

Gharti then adjourned House meeting till Friday.

A meeting of NC’s Parliamentary Party on June 14 had decided to ratchet up pressure on the government for its failure to expedite reconstruction and rehabilitation works.

Thursday’s House session was scheduled to discuss budget allocated for seven ministries, including the Ministry for Information and Communication, Ministry of Law and Ministry of Industry.

With NC upping the ante and obstructing House session, there is uncertainty whether Parliament will be able to complete budget discussion by July 1.

The NC has been critical of the government in Parliament ever since discussion on the appropriation bill started on Monday. Speaking in Parliament on Thursday, NC leader Prakash Sharan Mahat blamed the “government apathy” for the delay in reconstruction and rehabilitation.

“The government is doing everything in words and failing to translate them into action,” said Mahat. “PM Oli had announced that the government would provide shelters to victims before the start of the monsoon, but not even one family has got a house so far.” The NC has been demanding that the government provide the housing aid of Rs 200,000 at once, instead of distributing it in three tranches, to earthquake survivors so that they can build their houses at the earliest.

Stating that barely 5,000 earthquake victims have received the first tranche of Rs 50,000 so far, Mahat asked what the government has been doing for the last nine months. The NC has also accused the government of over-politicising the National Reconstruction Authority. The NC leaders also claim that hundreds of their cadres, who were previously listed as earthquake victims, were left out during the verification process, depriving them of the state grant for reconstruction.

“We won’t let the House function unless PM Oli furnishes convincing answers to the House,” NC leader Bimalendra Nidhi told the Post.