Kathmandu, June 20 -- When Speaker Krishna Bahadur Mahara allowed the National Medical Education Bill to pass through the House in January amid obstructions by the main opposition, Nepali Congress, he faced criticism for siding with the government.

Only recently, Mahara again allowed Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli to respond to questions raised by opposition lawmakers in relation to the government's policies and programmes just when they were standing, which suggests obstruction by lawmakers.

Lawmakers from the opposition benches have of late criticised the speaker for failing to maintain the dignity of his position and working as a minister.

They say both the government and the speaker are working in tandem, ignoring the opposition's vo...