KATHMANDU: Stay informed with Nepal News’ daily evening briefing, covering the most significant developments from Nepal and around the world. From politics and economy to sports, entertainment, and culture, we bring you a concise summary of the day’s top stories.

Appropriation Bill Passed; RSP And RPP Boycott House Session: The House of Representatives has passed the Appropriation Bill 2082. During Tuesday’s meeting of the House, Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel’s proposal to pass the Appropriation Bill 2082 was endorsed by a majority vote. While the Appropriation Bill was being passed, Members of Parliament from the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and the Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) were absent. They completely boycotted the budget discussions.

PM Oli Defends Budget as Balanced, Vows to Address Supply-Demand Gap: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli on Tuesday defended the annual budget presented by the government, calling it “as balanced as possible” given limited national resources, and pledged efforts to strike a better balance between demand and supply in the coming days. Speaking in the House of Representatives during discussions on the Appropriation Bill and cost-cutting proposals related to the President’s Office, Vice President’s Office, the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers’ Office, and associated bodies, Oli admitted that not all lawmakers are satisfied with the allocations.

Prachanda Says He Tried His Best to Prevent Injustice Against RSP President Rabi Lamichhane: CPN (Maoist Centre) Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ stated he made every effort to ensure no injustice is done to the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) and its Chairperson Rabi Lamichhane. He made the remarks after meeting CPN (Unified Socialist) Chairman Madhav Kumar Nepal at Singha Durbar. Responding to questions about RSP’s disagreement over the visit visa issue and reports of his agreement, Prachanda said he tried his best to protect RSP and Lamichhane from injustice.

RSP Boycotts Parliament Over ‘Biased’ Visit Visa Probe Committee: The Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP) boycotted Tuesday’s meeting of the House of Representatives in protest against the government’s formation of a probe committee on the visit visa controversy. The party expressed strong dissatisfaction with the appointment of former Chief Secretary Shankar Das Bairagi as the head of the investigation panel. According to the RSP, the committee lacks both independence and credibility, raising serious concerns about the integrity of the investigation.

Top Leaders of Ruling Coalition Hold Meeting at Baluwatar: Ahead of the scheduled vote on the budget for the upcoming fiscal year, top leaders of the ruling coalition held a meeting on Tuesday morning at the Prime Minister’s official residence in Baluwatar, according to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat. The meeting was attended by Prime Minister and CPN-UML Chair KP Sharma Oli, Nepali Congress President Sher Bahadur Deuba, Loktantrik Samajwadi Party Chair Mahantha Thakur, Nagarik Unmukti Party Chair Ranjita Shrestha, and Janamat Party Chair Dr. CK Raut, among others. The meeting agreed to ratify Appropriation Bill from the parliament today.

Visit Visa Probe Will Address Systemic Immigration Flaws, Says Home Minister Lekhak: Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak has announced that a probe committee has been formed to study, analyze, and investigate all problems related to visit visas and move forward with both short-term and long-term plans to resolve them. Speaking at Tuesday’s meeting of the House of Representatives, Lekhak informed lawmakers about the committee formed under the coordination of former Chief Secretary Shankar Das Bairagi, as decided by the Cabinet meeting. “We have already initiated some immediate reforms. However, those alone may not be sufficient,” said Minister Lekhak.

Top Leaders of Maoist Centre and Unified Socialist Hold Meeting at Singha Durbar: Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal ‘Prachanda’ of the main opposition CPN (Maoist Centre) met with Chairman Madhav Kumar Nepal and senior leaders of CPN (Unified Socialist) for discussions at Singha Durbar. Maoist Centre’s senior vice-chair Narayan Kaji Shrestha and General Secretary Dev Gurung attended alongside Unified Socialist’s senior vice-chair Rajendra Pandey, General Secretary Ghanshyam Bhusal, and senior leader Beduram Bhusal.

Committee Led by Bairagi Cannot Fairly Probe Visit Visa Scandal, Says Swarnim Wagle: Dr. Swarnim Wagle, Vice President of the Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), has stated that the committee led by former Chief Secretary Shanker Das Bairagi cannot conduct an impartial investigation into the visit visa scandal. Speaking during the House of Representatives meeting on Tuesday during the time allotted by the Speaker, Wagle said Bairagi is within the radar of individuals currently in positions of authority, and thus lacks the independence required to carry out the probe.

RPP Opposes Government’s Visit Visa Investigation Committee: In the Tuesday session of the House of Representatives, Rastriya Prajatantra Party (RPP) Chief Whip Gyan Bahadur Shahi voiced strong opposition to the investigation committee formed by the government regarding the visit visa controversy. Shahi highlighted that there have been 14 Home Ministers in the past 18 years, all of whom should be investigated. He criticized the committee’s formation as an attempt to protect the accused rather than hold them accountable.

Brigadier General Gaurav Kumar KC Promoted to Major General in Nepal Army: The Council of Ministers in its Monday meeting approved the promotion of Brigadier General Gaurav Kumar KC to the rank of Major General in the Nepal Army. Prior to this promotion, KC was appointed by the military headquarters as the Chief of the Eastern Command Base. Before taking on that role, he also served as the head of the Directorate of Military Information and Public Relations in the Nepal Army.

Four Bhutanese Refugees to Be Fined and Deported to Bhutan After Arrival in Nepal: Following deportation from the U.S., four Bhutanese refugees arriving in Nepal will each pay a fine of NPR 5,000 before being sent back to Bhutan. The Supreme Court had ordered resolution of the case within 60 days. The Immigration Department, led by Director General Govinda Rijal, announced the decision last Friday. Refugees Ashish Subedi, Roshan Tamang, Santosh Darji, and Ashok Gurung have been instructed to submit passports and flight tickets for their deportation process.

First COVID-19 Death in 25 Months Reported in Ilam, Sparks Concern: A woman from Suryaodaya Municipality in Ilam has died due to COVID-19 infection, marking the first reported coronavirus-related death in 25 months. According to Dr. Prakash Budhathoki, spokesperson for the Ministry of Health and Population, the last COVID-19 death was recorded on Baisakh 21, 2080 BS, when a 47-year-old man from Gandaki Province passed away due to the virus. The recent death has raised concerns as there had been no COVID-19 fatalities reported for an extended period.

SC Receives Habeas Corpus Petition Over Illegal Detention of TikToker Rama Basnet: A habeas corpus petition has been filed in the Supreme Court alleging the illegal detention of TikToker Rama Basnet. The petition, filed by Rama’s father Baldev Basnet, underwent its preliminary hearing on Tuesday. Baldev Basnet has named the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers’ Office, Ministry of Home Affairs, Police Headquarters, and the Police Cyber Bureau as respondents in the petition.

NEPSE Index Slightly Declines Amid Selling Pressure on Tuesday: On the third trading day of the week, Tuesday, the Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) index showed minimal movement, closing with a slight decline of 0.22 points at 2,600.53. Today’s market saw heightened selling pressure. Throughout the day, shares of 316 scripts from 249 companies were traded. Among them, the prices of 107 companies increased, while 142 saw a decline. On Tuesday, the Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) reported total transactions worth Rs 5.76 billion. Over the course of the day, a total of 13.8 million shares were traded.

Government Revises Budget Clause Amid ‘Take and Pay’ Dispute in Hydropower: Following the controversy over the ‘take and pay’ model in hydropower projects, the government has amended a key clause in the national budget. Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Bishnu Prasad Paudel on Tuesday presented a clarification and a new proposal in the House of Representatives regarding Clause 227 of the budget. According to his revised proposal, the clause now states that Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) can be signed only with projects whose energy consumption or export is confirmed based on financial risk assessment, and for which the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) can guarantee payment liabilities.

NRB Extends Deadline for Repaying Excess Working Capital Loans by Two Years: Borrowers who have taken working capital loans beyond the regulatory limit now have an additional two years to repay them. The Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) on Monday issued an amendment to its working capital loan guidelines, allowing repayments until mid-July 2027. Previously, the deadline for repaying such excess loans was set for mid-July 2025.

Nepal’s Trade Deficit with Bangladesh and Bhutan Widens Despite Growing Trade: Nepal continues to face a trade deficit with neighboring countries Bangladesh and Bhutan, even as bilateral trade has increased. Due to Nepal’s inability to boost exports, losses have continued to mount. In the first eleven months of the current fiscal year, Nepal recorded a trade deficit of Rs 3.91 billion with Bangladesh and Rs 1.28 billion with Bhutan.

Securities Board Expands Investment Scope for Investment Companies: The Securities Board of Nepal (SEBON) has widened the investment scope for investment companies. Previously, such companies were only allowed to invest in promoter shares of firms in energy, transport, and communication sectors. Now, SEBON has authorized investment companies to also invest in primary shares and purchase shares from the secondary market, while maintaining limitations on promoter shares in specified sectors.

Swastima Khadka Cast in ‘Lalibazar’, New Film by Jatra Makers: Swastima Khadka has been signed as the lead actress in Lalibazar, the latest project from Shatkon Arts—the banner behind successful films like Jatra, Jatrai Jatra, Mahapurush, and Mahajatra. The production team has unveiled a featured poster of Khadka and announced that the film will be released on Falgun 1. In the poster, Khadka appears as a pregnant woman, with her styling and expressions hinting at a unique and possibly unconventional storyline.

Keki Adhikari to Produce Two New Films: ‘BhadraKali’ and ‘Radha Piyari’: Actress Keki Adhikari is set to produce two new films titled BhadraKali and Radha Piyari. Both projects will be produced under her own banner, Keki Adhikari Films Pvt. Ltd. She has already obtained production approval from the Film Development Board for both films. For BhadraKali, she has listed herself as the producer. The film will be directed by Bimba Adhikari, and both Keki and Bimba are also set to appear as actors in the project.

Patriotic Song of ‘Yo Man Ta Mero Nepali Ho’ Filmed Ahead of Movie Release: The film Yo Man Ta Mero Nepali Ho, scheduled for release on Asar 27, recently completed the shooting of its title song. The patriotic-themed song was filmed on Monday at Sanga Chowk in Jarshing Pauwa. The song features music by Bikash Chaudhary, lyrics by Shankar Adhikari Ghayal, and vocals by Kamal Rasaili. It is expected to reflect the core narrative and emotional tone of the film.

Nepal Defeats Japan by 9 Wickets in ACC U-16 East Zone Cup: Nepal secured a dominant second consecutive win in the ongoing ACC Men’s U-16 East Zone Cup 2025 in Malaysia. In their second match played Tuesday morning, Nepal defeated Japan by a comfortable margin of 9 wickets. Chasing a modest target of 81 runs set by Japan, Nepal reached the total in just 14.2 overs, losing only one wicket. Though they lost an early wicket, Nepal’s chase was anchored by Prasiddha Jaisi, who remained unbeaten on 28 off 34 balls with two boundaries.

Chitwan Rhinos Announce Retained and Released Players for NPL Season 2: Chitwan Rhinos have revealed the list of players they are retaining and releasing for the second edition of the popular franchise cricket tournament, the Nepal Premier League (NPL). The franchise has decided to retain Kushal Malla as their marquee player for the upcoming season. Additionally, grade ‘A’ players Rijhan Dhakal and Kamal Singh Airee will also remain with the team, according to the Rhinos management.

Inter-District Kabaddi Tournament Kicks Off in Damauli: Organized by the Gandaki Province Kabaddi Association with financial support from the Provincial Sports Council and managed by the District Sports Development Committee, an inter-district kabaddi tournament began in Damauli on Monday. Teams from Tanahun, Gorkha, Nawalpur, Kaski, Syangja, Parbat, Baglung, and Myagdi are participating in the tournament.  On the first day, five matches were completed. Tanahun defeated Syangja, Nawalpur triumphed over Myagdi, Kaski won against Gorkha, Baglung beat Parbat, and Nawalpur secured another victory over Tanahun.

Israel and Iran Agree Ceasefire Amid Waves of Missiles: Iran and Israel are reported to have agreed to a ceasefire following 12 days of exchanging intense air strikes, including a “last minute” barrage fired by Tehran. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement on Tuesday morning that Israel had agreed to the truce proposal announced by United States President Donald Trump overnight. Earlier, Iranian state television reported that the ceasefire had begun.

Israeli Forces Kill 37 Palestinians in Gaza: According to medical sources on the ground, Israeli forces have killed at least 37 Palestinians in Gaza since the early hours of this morning, as military operations in the enclave continue to intensify. Among the dead are 29 individuals who were reportedly killed in a single, devastating airstrike near a food distribution centre, where many civilians had gathered in hopes of receiving essential aid amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis. Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos and desperation, as families fled the area in panic following the blast.

NATO Summit Opens Amid Discord Over Defence Spending and Ukraine: U.S. President Donald Trump and his NATO counterparts are due to gather Tuesday for a summit that could unite the world’s biggest security organisation around a new defence spending pledge or widen divisions among the 32 allies. Just a week ago, things had seemed rosy. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte was optimistic the European members and Canada would commit to invest at least as much of their economic growth on defence as the United States does for the first time.