Amid growing pressure from protests by community school teachers, Minister for Education, Science, and Technology Bidya Bhattarai resigned from her post on Monday, April 21.

Bhattarai is said to have submitted her resignation following a meeting with Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, as demonstrations demanding the prompt issuing of the long-pending School Education Act continued to paralyze the education sector.

Since April 2, thousands of community school teachers have been staging protests centered in Kathmandu. 

Nepal Teachers’ Federation, the umbrella organization leading the movement, has ramped up its campaign by suspending teaching and other duties nationwide.

The protests have also cast uncertainty over the higher secondary level examinations scheduled to begin on April 24.

Despite repeated government appeals for restraint, the Nepal Teachers’ Federation has escalated its pressure campaign. Teachers have yet to begin checking answer sheets from the Secondary Education Examination (SEE), which was held from March 20 to April 1.

Recent discussions with Minister Bhattarai, Speaker Devraj Ghimire, and Prime Minister Oli failed to yield any breakthrough.

Reports indicate that Bhattarai had prepared a proposal to address the teachers’ demands, which was to be tabled at Monday’s Cabinet meeting.

Bhattarai, a leader from the CPN(UML), had assumed office on July 15, 2024.