Nepal’s home minister resigns, second cabinet exit in one month

News|Politics

Nepal’s minister of home affairs has resigned, saying there have been questions about his investments and other matters. He is the second minister to withdraw from the country’s month-old government.

Sudan Gurung announced his departure on Wednesday, stressing that questions should be investigated, without giving further details.

list of 3 items

list 1 of 3Nepal’s ex-PM Oli detained over alleged role in deadly protest crackdown
list 2 of 3Now in power, Nepal’s rapper-politician Balen Shah faces new challenge
list 3 of 3Ex-rapper Balendra Shah sweeps to power in Nepal landslide election victory

end of list

“I have resigned from the position of Home Minister with effect from today,” the 38-year-old posted on his social media accounts.

“For me, morality is greater than a position, and there is no greater power than public trust … Public life should be clean, leadership should be accountable,” added Gurung, who took office on March 27.

Dipa Dahal, press adviser to Prime Minister Balendra Shah, confirmed the reception of Gurung’s resignation. Shah will take charge of the Ministry of Home Affairs until a new appointment is made, Dahal added.

Gurung ‌came into the spotlight after he ordered the arrest of former Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli and his home minister, Ramesh Lekhak, in connection with an investigation into their roles during a crackdown on youth-led protests last September.

Rapper-turned-politician Shah, 35, became prime minister after his three-year-old Rastriya Swatantra Party (RSP), ⁠which had promised to control corruption, provide good ⁠governance and transparency, was swept into power in last month’s parliamentary election.

During his three-year stint as mayor of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu, Shah gained popularity for his reforms.

Earlier this month, the government formed a five-member commission led by a former Supreme Court judge to investigate the assets of politicians and officials.

The commission was a part of the government’s 100-point reform agenda issued after Shah took office.

Shah dismissed his ‌labour minister earlier this month after RSP ruled Dipak Kumar Sah had misused “the dignity of his position” to ‌get ‌his wife appointed as a member of the board of directors of the country’s Health Insurance Board.

Nepal currently ranks 109th out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index.