Newly-appointed Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel

October 15: Prime Minister KP Oli has reshuffled the cabinet, appointing three new faces in the Council of Ministers.

PM Oli on Wednesday (October 14) appointed NCP General Secretary Bishnu Poudel to the post of Finance Minister, which was lying vacant since the departure of Yuba Raj Khatiwada.

Likewise, Krishna Gopal Shrestha has been appointed as Minister for Urban Development. Lilanath Shrestha has got the portfolio of Women, Children and Senior Citizen Ministry. All of the three newly-appointed ministers are close to PM Oli.

The Presidents Office said in a statement that the president has appointed new ministers, reshuffled the cabinet and has also made a new arrangement for work division upon the recommendation of the prime minister.

Five years ago, Oli had appointed Poudel as  finance minister during his first stint as prime minister.

Khatiwada, a former governor of Nepal Rastra Bank who  was handpicked by Oli as the finance minister, had resigned from his post after his term as member of upper house expired. He was unable to get reappointed to the upper house due to the intra-party rift within the ruling Nepal Communist Party.

Soon after his resignation, PM Oli appointed Khatiwada as his financial advisor.

Meanwhile, PM Oli has removed Deputy Prime Minister Ishwar Pokharel from his responsibilities as the defense minister and handed him the duty of overseeing the Prime Minister’s Office. Pokharel was removed from the defense ministry at a time when his relation with the Nepalese Army was reportedly getting cold.

Minister Parbat Gurung has been appointed as Minister for Communication and Information Technology. Prior to this, Gurung held the portfolio of Ministry of Women, Children and Senior Citizen.