Could China’s top legislative body soon shed new light on the fates of 2 sacked ministers?

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The meeting could provide a glimpse into the scrutiny that might result in both Qin and Li being removed from the body, which has close to 3,000 members.

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After being hand-picked by Chinese President Xi Jinping, both men were abruptly removed from their senior posts over the past five months after vanishing from public view earlier this year. Beijing’s typically secretive political machinery has provided no explanation for their removal or details on their whereabouts, and has not confirmed if they are under investigation.

Removal from the NPC could signal serious wrongdoing and grim prospects for what remains of their political careers.

According to a report on the NPC website, ending a membership could be a result of violations of discipline or ethics, involvement in criminal activities, or significantly failing to perform duties, deeming one no longer fit for the position.

Revoking the membership of an NPC representative is the “most important and stringent form of supervision by constituents or electoral units and this concerns the representatives’ political life”, the report said.

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China sacks defence minister Li Shangfu with no explanation after nearly two-month absence

China sacks defence minister Li Shangfu with no explanation after nearly two-month absence

The NPC also accepts resignations in cases concerning violations of law and regulation, resignations ordered by authorities, or voluntary resignations due to “self-blame”, it said.

Qin and Li were both removed from their state positions during previous NPC sessions, weeks after they had each disappeared.

Once a rising political star, Qin was dismissed as state councillor, which had conferred upon him a rank higher than other ministers in China’s cabinet, the State Council, in during an NPC session in October.

Before that, Qin had been sacked as China’s foreign minister in July, seven months after he took the post, following his last public appearance in late June in Beijing.

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In the same October NPC session, Li was dismissed from his positions as defence minister and state councillor, and expelled from the powerful Central Military Commission. His last public appearance was in late August in Beijing.

Qin has since been replaced by China’s top diplomat – and his predecessor – Wang Yi, but no one has been named as the new defence minister.

Both men remain in the 205-member Central Committee, the ruling Communist Party’s top decision-making body.

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Qin was appointed as foreign minister last December, after serving just 17 months as China’s ambassador to the United States.

He was made a state councillor during the annual legislative sessions in March, when the party completed a twice-a-decade leadership transition – with a reshuffle of top government jobs and confirmation of Xi’s third term as China’s president.

Li was appointed as a state councillor in March, as well as defence minister, making global headlines as the country’s first defence minister on a US sanction list.

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