KATHMANDU: Government Spokesperson and Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung, has said that Home Minister Ramesh Lekhak does not need to resign in connection with the ongoing visit visa scandal.
Speaking briefly to the media after the CPN-UML Secretariat meeting on Sunday, Gurung stated that the arrest of a government official alone does not justify calls for the minister’s resignation.
“Let the investigation proceed. Just because Joint Secretary Tirtharaj Bhattarai has been arrested doesn’t mean the Home Minister must step down,” Gurung said.
Bhattarai, the former head of the Immigration Office at Tribhuvan International Airport, is under investigation by the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) for allegedly collecting up to Rs. 5 million daily through illegal visa dealings. His statement claiming that a portion of the money was handed to the Home Minister’s secretariat has caused a political storm.
While opposition parties, including the Maoist Centre, are demanding Lekhak’s resignation, UML—part of the ruling coalition—has stepped in to defend him.
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