PM Karki Cuts Secretariat Size After Backlash Over Controversial Hiring

Following public backlash over recent appointments to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Prime Minister Sushila Karki has decided to reduce the size of her team, cutting it down to six positions.

In a statement issued Wednesday, November 26, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers said that all appointments except six key roles would be revoked from Thursday. The retained positions are: chief advisor, public relations advisor, chief personal secretary, press coordinator, personal section officer (photographer), and an honorary public health expert.

Under the Prime Minister’s Advisor and Secretariat Management Procedures 2074 (Eleventh Amendment 2081), the PM’s Secretariat can have up to 66 positions. Karki had appointed 20 members.

The controversy escalated after Chief Personal Secretary Adarsha Kumar Shrestha appointed his wife, Sangita Shrestha to the Secretariat. Although the Karki administration initially defended the appointment, citing the need for a trusted individual to work closely with the prime minister, youth activists accused the administration of blatant nepotism and demanded her immediate removal.