Kathmandu, July 1 -- One of the highlights of the new Civil Service Bill was a provision barring top bureaucrats from taking up political appointments for two years after retirement. The widely-debated provision was seen as a step towards curbing the dominance of freshly-retired civil servants in constitutional appointments.

The provision was expected to prevent top bureaucrats from working in cahoots with the government of the day in instances of policy corruption, on a quid pro quo basis.

The provision hadn't sat well with top bureaucrats. A team including Chief Secretary Ek Narayan Aryal and government secretaries lobbied hard for its removal as they visited almost all political power centres.

The parliamentary State Affairs and Goo...