Amid continuing political deadlock in the country, the government is set to begin the controversial recruitment to the Nepal Army, a move likely to be opposed by the Maoists and may derail the already stalled peace process.
Vidya Bhandari, Defense Minister in the 22-party Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist Leninist (UML)-led alliance, said the government would resume recruitment to the military this month.
She said fresh recruitment can be carried out so long as the number remains within the 95,753 ceiling imposed by the CPA.
"I think we will resume recruitment within October," she was quoted as saying by the Kantipur online today.
"The government is currently engaged in an exercise to resume recruitment. I have asked the Army to submit the number of personnel needed and the departments where positions are vacant," Bhandari said after meeting top military officials at the Defence Ministry yesterday.
She underlined that the recruitment to vacant positions within the ceiling does not violate the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed between the Maoists and the Seven-Party Alliance government in 2006.
"We can’t keep the army at a standstill by referring to clauses in the CPA," she said, adding "CPA has only prohibited increase in the number of Army personnel above the existing ceiling. If that’s a problem, we should review it."
